US08950268B2
A material testing machine measuring strain of a tube-like test piece, comprising: a plurality of radial direction displacement detection units; an axis direction displacement detection unit; and a calculation unit that calculates the strain, wherein: each of first and second displacement meters of at least one of the radial direction displacement detection units comprises: a needle; a fixed frame; a movable frame; and a displacement sensor having a body part and a contact protruding from the body part, and wherein a tip of the contact contacts a stopper plate; the needle is oriented in the radial direction of the test piece; the needle protrudes from an end of the movable frame; displacement in the radial direction of the test piece is detected by detecting a moving amount of the needle; and the calculation unit calculates a curvature radius in the tube axis direction of the test piece.
US08950266B2
A method of manufacturing a fluidic structure is disclosed. A cavity that defines a shape of an element of the fluidic structure within a material is formed. The cavity is filled with liquid metal. The cavity is sealed. The fluidic structure behaves as an antenna. A fluidic antenna includes a material that defines a shape of the fluidic antenna by a cavity filled with liquid metal formed within the material, where the material further defines at least one mechanical property of the fluidic antenna.
US08950264B2
A jig device usable with a flat display panel which includes a frame including a base frame having an opening and a vertical frame which extends vertically along a perimeter of the base frame and a supporting frame coupled to the base frame within the frame, on which the flat display panel is disposed, wherein the supporting frame includes fixing portions provided at corners thereof to support respective corners of the flat display panel.
US08950259B2
The manufacturing of an element structure including two or more sensor element is to be facilitated. An element structure includes a first substrate including a first support layer and a first sensor element disposed on the first support layer and a second substrate including a second support layer and a second sensor element disposed on the second support layer, wherein the second substrate is disposed on the first substrate via a spacer member in a state in which the first sensor element and the second sensor element are disposed to face each other.
US08950255B2
A sensing device can detect material depth, liquid-level, and temperature. The sensing device has a probe, a control module, a volume sensing module, a thermal sensing module, an output module, and a power module. The probe has two material electrodes connected to the volume sensing module and a thermal electrode connected to the thermal sensing module. A rated voltage is applied at the material electrodes based on radio frequency admittance. A current deviation of the material electrodes is obtained by the volume sensing module, and calculated via the control module by material characteristics to obtain a correct storage amount of material. A temperature at each material depth is correctly detected by the thermal electrode. Steel cable is used as the material of the material electrodes of the probe to detect material depth or liquid level with high impact resistant ability.
US08950247B2
The invention relates to a pressure-measuring plug for a combustion engine comprising a plug body with a body tip section facing in use the combustion chamber and comprising a passage, a ring-shaped sensing structure comprising an outer section, an inner section and an annular diaphragm, the plug body being attached to the outer section, a circular membrane comprising an outer part coupled to the outer section and an inner part coupled to the inner section, the membrane provides a sealing protecting the annular diaphragm against the harsh environment in a combustion chamber; and, a plug chamber formed by the circular membrane and the body tip section wherein the passage of the body tip section provides an open connection between the plug chamber and the combustion chamber. The passage is part of a channel structure which functions as a soot filter.
US08950240B2
An acetone gas sensor apparatus, including: a chamber, used for containing a gas sample taken from a breath of a person; and an acetone gas sensor, placed in the chamber for generating an output current in response to an acetone concentration of the gas sample, the acetone gas sensor including: a substrate; a buffer layer, deposited on the substrate; an InN epilayer, deposited on the buffer layer for providing a current path for the output current; a first conductive contact, deposited on the InN epilayer for providing a drain contact; and a second conductive contact, deposited on the InN epilayer for providing a source contact.
US08950230B2
A method of making a composite tube-shaped fabrication member by providing in coils a first planar member suitable to form a flange of a tube-shaped fabrication member, two second planar members suitable to form web portions of a tube-shaped frame member, and two third planar members suitable to form a portion of a flange of the tube-shaped member, uncoiling the coils fo first, second, and third planar members and passing them through accumulators, aligning the first, second, and third planar members adjacent respective side portions and attaching side portions of each planar member to respective side portions of adjacent planar members to form a composite intermediate product, and cold-forming to form a composite fabrication member of a desired shape.
US08950228B2
A bending press system is disclosed. The bending press system may include: at least one guide post; a slide plate mounted at a slider so as to be slidable upwardly or downwardly along the guide post; a bending die including a lower die having an upper surface and an upper die having a lower surface corresponding to the upper surface of the lower die and mounted on a lower surface of the slide plate, and adapted to bend an object supplied between the lower die and the upper die to have a predetermined curvature; and a pair of clamping means mounted respectively at both sides of the bending die corresponding to the bending die and adapted to clamp both end portions of the object.
US08950227B2
A method and a device have high energy efficiency and high descaling performance, with which high-quality rolling stock can be produced. In a method in which the rolling stock is heated in an induction furnace and subsequently descaled, before the rolling stock is rolled in a rolling stand or rolling relay, the heated rolling stock is descaled by at least one rotating water jet from a rotary descaler; then at least one temperature of the descaled rolling stock is respectively recorded by a temperature measuring instrument and delivered to a controller; and the controller determines at least one control parameter with the aid of a control rule and by taking into account a setpoint temperature, and delivers it to a control component, at least one inductor of the induction furnace being driven so that the temperature of the descaled rolling stock corresponds as far as possible to the setpoint temperature.
US08950225B2
The invention relates to a handle device (10) for a closing device (12) for a displaceable door (11) or similar on a vehicle, comprising a first module (30) which comprises a handle support (31) and which is arranged on the inner side (11.4) of the door (11) by means of the handle support (31), and a second module (50) which is arranged on the outer side (11.5) of the door (11), and contains a handle part (51). Said handle part (51) is displaceably mounted in relation to the door (11) for operating said handle device (10). According to the invention, the second module (50) comprises a handle shell (54) which is arranged on the outer side (11.5) of the door (11), and said handle part (51) is displaceably mounted on said handle shell (54). The invention also relates to a method for mounting a handle device (10) which is used to operate a closing device (12) of a vehicle.
US08950224B2
Provided is a temporary secure storage system for firearms. The system is designed to provide convenient, secure storage of handguns. A number of storage containers employing electronic locking mechanisms are stored within a secure facility. Customers can rent a storage container for a predetermined period of time, during which firearms and accoutrement are kept within an individually locked container. Biometric scanners, card readers, and PIN keypads are examples of the types of authenticators used on each storage container to ensure that only the owner gains access to the contents. The system is ideally suited for persons who lawfully carry concealed weapons and seek to abide by local ordinances regarding gun-free areas. In this manner the system provides convenience and peace of mind to gun-carrying persons.
US08950214B2
In one embodiment, an ornamental component is provided for use with jewelry (a bracelet or necklace). The ornamental component has a through hole allowing the ornamental component to be strung on an elongated member of the jewelry. The ornamental component includes a self-supporting housing and an insert assembly. The housing has a through hole with first and second openings at first and second sides, respectively, of the housing. The insert assembly is inserted in the through hole of the housing, and the insert assembly is assembled from a first tubular element and a gripping element. The first tubular element has a through hole that forms at least a part of the ornamental component through hole. The gripping element is configured to frictionally grip a part of the jewelry item. The first tubular element is configured to secure the gripping element inside the through hole of the ornamental component.
US08950201B2
A heat pump includes a main refrigerant circuit having a compressor, an indoor heat exchanger, and an outdoor heat exchanger, and a reversing valve. A biflow expansion valve is configured to receive condensed liquid refrigerant and to expand the refrigerant. A cooling circuit in fluid communication with the main refrigerant line includes an expansion device configured to receive a portion of condensed liquid refrigerant from the main refrigerant circuit and to expand the portion of condensed liquid refrigerant. A heat sink is configured to receive the expanded portion of refrigerant from the expansion device. Power electronics are coupled to the heat sink such that the portion of expanded refrigerant from the expansion device passes through the heat sink and cools the power electronics.
US08950197B2
A clear ice making system and method utilizes an ice forming tray pivotally connected to opposing side walls of an icemaker housing. Ice forming fingers of a dedicated evaporator extend into fluid within the ice forming tray, and are cooled by communication with the refrigerant circulating system of the refrigerator. A motor oscillates the ice forming tray about a longitudinal axis at a frequency of about 0.4-0.6 hertz as fluid channels freezes on the ice forming fingers over time, forming clear ice pieces. During an ice dispensing event, the motor pivots the ice making tray about the longitudinal axis such that fluid remaining within the ice making tray drains into a fluid reservoir below. The ice forming fingers are then heated to release the clear ice pieces for transfer from the fresh food compartment to the freezer compartment of the refrigerator.
US08950195B2
A thermodynamic pump for provides gaseous hydrogen employing a plurality of liquid hydrogen (LH2) tanks sequentially pressurized with gaseous hydrogen (GH2) from an accumulator. A heat exchanger receiving LH2 from each of the plurality of tanks as sequentially pressurized returns pressurized GH2 to the accumulator for supply to an engine.
US08950189B2
A fuel injection array for a gas turbine engine includes a plurality of bluff body injectors and a plurality of swirler injectors. A control operates the plurality of bluff body injectors and swirler injectors such that bluff body injectors are utilized without all of the swirler injectors at least at low power operation. The swirler injectors are utilized at higher power operation.
US08950188B2
A fuel nozzle assembly for a gas turbine, the assembly including: a cylindrical center body; a cylindrical shroud coaxial with and extending around the center body, and a turning guide having an downstream edge extending in a passage between the center body and an inlet to the shroud, wherein the turning guide extends only partially around the center body.
US08950186B2
A system and method for supplementing fuel feed pressure and flow within an aircraft fuel system. The fuel system includes boost and override fuel pumps delivering fuel from the tanks to a fuel manifold, and a jettison fuel pump. The method includes the steps of: (a) sensing whether the aircraft engine is operating near maximum power; (b) upon sensing the condition, operating the jettison fuel pump in fluid interconnection with the override fuel pump to deliver fuel to the fuel manifold; and (c) upon sensing the cessation of the condition, deactivating the jettison fuel pump. The system includes a monitoring circuit signaling when the aircraft engine speed is greater than a predetermined threshold, and a fuel system control circuit operating a jettison fuel pump enable circuit portion in response to the signal while omitting other jettisoning operations. The jettison fuel pump consequently functions as an override fuel pump assist.
US08950183B2
An engine system includes a plurality of turbochargers each including a compressor outlet fluidly connected to an intake manifold of an engine. A plurality of intake conduits are configured to each convey incoming combustion air to one of the turbochargers, and each includes a casing, and a duct within the casing having a surge inhibitor mounted thereon which includes a flow-directing surface oriented obliquely to an axis of the duct to direct combustion air leaked back out of the compressor inlet away from a discharging stream of combustion air exiting the duct. Related methodology is also disclosed.
US08950180B2
A hybrid construction machine drives the upper swing structure using a hydraulic motor and an electric motor together and is capable of regenerating the energy of the upper swing structure in deceleration or stopping into electric power and using the regenerated electric power for assisting the hydraulic motor for driving the upper swing structure. The opening area characteristics of a meter-out restrictor and a bleed-off restrictor of a swing directional control valve are set to become larger than for construction machines driving the upper swing structure with the hydraulic motor alone. Torque of the electric motor is controlled so that the total sum of the actual torque occurring in the hydraulic and electric motors in deceleration or acceleration of the hydraulic motor equals the torque occurring when the opening area of the meter-out restrictor or the bleed-off restrictor is set at the prescribed opening area.
US08950176B2
An exhaust emission reduction system for a fuel injected engine system has a plurality of emission reduction components configured to process the exhaust gas. The emissions reduction components include of one or more NOX reduction components and one or more filtration components configured to reduce particulate matter, hydrocarbons and/or carbon monoxide emissions. Each engine cylinder is associated with a respective one of the emission reduction components, such that exhaust gas from each engine cylinder flows through the respective one emission reduction component in parallel with the exhaust gas flows from the other cylinders through their respective emission reduction components.
US08950171B2
A tip turbine engine provides an axial compressor rotor that is counter-rotated relative to a fan. A planetary gearset couples rotation of a fan to an axial compressor rotor, such that the axial compressor rotor is driven by rotation of the fan in a rotational direction opposite that of the fan. By counter-rotating the axial compressor rotor, a final stage of compressor vanes between the final stage of compressor blades and inlets to the hollow fan blades of the fan are eliminated. As a result, the length of the axial compressor and the overall length of the tip turbine engine are decreased.
US08950165B2
In an apparatus for inserting a postal item into an envelope, the envelope is fed with its flap fold trailing its envelope body and its flap along a flap opener. A free flap opener edge enters between the flap and the envelope body until the flap fold abuts the free flap opener edge. While holding the flap against the flap opener, the flap is pivoted relative to the envelope body about the flap fold to an open position and subsequently the postal item is inserted into the envelope body. An apparatus for carrying such a method is also described.
US08950164B2
A packaging for a mattress consisting of a wrapping provided by a sheet of heat-sealing plastics, the wrapping comprising two rectangular portions, which are sized to cover the opposite faces of the mattress and have perimetric regions which are folded so as to cover the perimetric band of the mattress and have, along at least two mutually opposite and parallel sides of the mattress, subflaps which are folded outward and heat-sealed to each other, so as to form wings provided with slots adapted to act as handles.
US08950148B2
A floor panel for a floor covering includes a pair of two opposite sides having coupling parts allowing to couple the floor panel to similar floor panels. The coupling parts, in a coupled condition, provide locking in vertical and horizontal directions. The floor panel has a core including two core material parts provided as a sandwich structure between an upper layer and a bottom layer, and respectively extending up to one of the two sides. A locking element is in the form of an insert located at one of the sides of the coupling parts, and is mounted in the core material part. The locking element is of the type which, in the coupled condition of two of such floor panels, effects a locking in a vertical direction. The two core material parts include a different basic material or a basic material with different properties.
US08950145B2
A lining comprising at least two opposing profiled frame elements in spaced relationship to each other, at least one membrane element disposed between said profiled frame elements and connected to said profiled frame elements, at least partially, by means of rearwardly engaging fastening means and at least one taughtening means adapted to taughten said membrane element between said profiled frame elements. The membrane element has, as taughtening means, at least one taughtening zip fastener, wherein the state of the membrane element can be changed, by closing the taughtening zip fastener, to a state in which it is taughtened between the profiled frame elements. Installation and opening of the membrane field can be significantly simplified by the inclusion of a second, so-called access zip fastener.
US08950142B2
Embodiments of the invention provide systems and methods for insulating a component of a home or building. An insulated component may include a generally planar surface and a frame positioned atop one side of the generally planar surface. The frame may include a plurality of outer studs coupled together to form an outer periphery and inner studs that divide the frame into one or more sections. One or more of the sections may include a cavity or hollow space. The insulated component may also include a first layer of insulation within one or more of the cavities. The first layer of insulation may include a pour insulation material that transitions from a liquid state or phase to a solid state or phase.
US08950134B2
A trim molding system for a wall surface having an existing baseboard disposed adjacent a floor and abutting a doorway. The trim molding system comprises a capping baseboard that is attachable to the wall surface in covering relationship with the existing baseboard. The system further includes baseboard return that is attachable to the wall surface. The baseboard return is disposed between the existing vertical doorway molding and the capping baseboard by removing a portion of the existing baseboard adjacent the doorway to accommodate the baseboard return.
US08950130B2
Techniques for building construction using fabricated timbers. In one example, such timbers are fabricated using conventional 2× (two-by) lumber to produce a square log appearance. These fabricated timbers are stacked to form outside and/or inside walls. The fabricated timbers and walls are configured to sustain desired vertical and lateral loads anticipated of a building such as a cabin, home, garage, barn, office building, or the like. A building constructed using such timbers appears to be built of square logs. Fabricated timber construction, as compared to conventional log or stick-frame construction, provides the appearance of high-quality log construction at a far lower cost, with higher R-values and appraised values, and is also far lower in cost and much simpler than conventional stick-frame construction.
US08950126B2
The wooden building skeleton of the present invention has excellent quake resistance because the column of a rigid-frame structure joined to a cross member or the foundation so that a bending moment can be transferred therebetween and the load-bearing wall therein exhibit their load bearing ability. A foundation and a wooden column and the wooden column and a beam are respectively joined by two bolts so that a bending moment can be transferred therebetween. A load-bearing wall is also provided between the beam and the foundation. The length of the section of the bolts which undergoes elongation when inter-story deflection occurs between the beam and the foundation or the cross-sectional dimensions of the wooden column is set such that the inter-story deflection which is generated before the wooden column is fractured is almost equal to or greater than the inter-story deflection which is generated before the load-bearing wall is fractured.
US08950119B2
A method of operating a window having a sash and a window opening limit device includes moving the sash from a closed position to a limited position. When in the limited position, the window opening limit device is in a projected position, and the sash is engaged with the window opening limit device. Moving the window opening limit device to a retracted position disengages the sash and the window opening limit device. The sash may then be moved from the limited position to an open range. When the sash is returned to the closed position, the window opening limit device automatically returns to the projected position, and the sash is disengaged with the window opening limit device.
US08950118B2
A gate adjustment system has a bull-nose glide, a flat glide, a plurality of spacers, a gap size gauge, and a gap adjustment wedge. The glides are attached to the latch post and the latch side of a gate opposite one another. As the gate is shut, the bull-nose portion of the bull-nose glide impacts the rounded edge of the flat glide. The two curved surfaces allow the impact force to cause the gate to be lifted and pushed back into alignment. The gap adjustment wedge can be positioned between the top of the latch side and the latch post and pushed downwards into the gap until the gap is uniform from the top to the bottom. The gap size gauge then measures the size of the gap and that measurement is used to determine which of the plurality of spacers should be installed with the glides.
US08950109B2
A method of applying acoustic wave to rice seeds for increasing yield comprises the following steps: (1) Process rice seeds by winnowing and/or wet separation; (2) Soak the rice seeds for 10 to 12 hours and pre-process by acoustic wave irradiation in power density from 0.25 to 25 w/L; (3) Use acoustic wave frequency from 10 khz to 2000 khz for acoustic wave processing; (4) Take out the rice seeds processed by the acoustic wave from soaking liquid and keep the rice seeds stationary until they excrete convex white flakes. A device for applying acoustic wave to rice seeds for increasing yield comprises a container (1) for holding rice seeds and soaking liquid, and also a dasher (2); at least one ultrasonic transducer (3) for generating acoustic wave is disposed on sides or bottom of the container.
US08950108B1
A large fly trap apparatus designed for use around livestock and other outdoor areas to attract and trap flies without bait. The apparatus includes a base and a cylindrical canopy having a plurality of conical feeder tubes for entrance into a trap chamber. The canopy is formed from a plurality of support frames covered by a mesh covering. The feeder tubes allow flies to land on the outside of the mesh cover and crawl through the funnel-shaped feeder tubes into the trap chamber, where they become trapped.
US08950106B2
The invention relates to a flasher, which has attachment points at two opposite ends for a line or hook used in fishing. The flasher includes two plate pieces, between which a connection is arranged, which permits the mutual movement of the plate pieces.
US08950104B2
A hole retaining device to preserve an ice fishing hole comprising a cylinder, where the cylinder extends between an open rim and a closed bottom, and where the cylinder houses a fire ignited to melt ice surround the hole retaining device; a handle attached to the rim, where the handle serves to lift the cylinder; and a bait container attached to the bottom of the cylinder, where the bait container houses bait for ice fishing. The hole retaining device features a tapered cylinder to easily remove the device from the fishing hole.
US08950097B2
A magazine well for a firearm having an angled spine receiving portion. A charging handle for a firearm having latch that extends below a bottom surface of a crossbar. A bolt carrier for a firearm having a pair of vent holes disposed in the indented portion and at least one additional vent hole on indented portion adjacent to the pair of vent holes. A bolt catch for a firearm having a receiving portion curved to match the contours of a human thumb. A scope assembly for a firearm having markers on a scope and amount that correspond to the same radial positions. A bolt for a firearm having a plurality of ribs disposed on a main body and extending from a front end toward a tail portion of the bolt.
US08950096B2
A display apparatus is provided for displaying a jersey with a three-dimensional view with a vision effect of floating in mid-air in an enclosed environment. The display apparatus comprises an outer casing body, a front and a back clear screen, an inner support member, an optional desk support and an opening means. In particular, when a jersey is supported by the inner support member as provided, the support member is invisible such that it contributes to the mid-air floating visual effect. The display apparatus may further comprise components to achieve visual, audio and/or video effects controlled by sensors.
US08950095B2
A paving advertisement has an elongated flexible tape body with a base substrate layer. The base substrate layer has front and rear faces, the front face having at least one text message that conveys information. The base substrate layer includes a cold crack additive, such as polyvinyl chloride, thereby increasing its strength and flexibility.
US08950094B2
A trading card (10) that is collectible by one or more users comprises a card body (12) and a first card insert (20). The card body (12) includes a first side (14), an opposed second side (16), and a first slot region (18A) that is formed into at least one of the first side (14) and the second side (16). The first card insert (20) is selectively positioned within the first slot region (18A). Additionally, the trading card (10) can further comprise a second card insert (20) that is selectively and alternatively positioned within the first slot region (18A). The card body (12) can further include a second slot region (18B). Each of the card inserts (20) can be interchangeably positioned within one of the first slot region (18A) and the second slot region (18B).
US08950082B2
According to one embodiment, a supercritical drying method for a semiconductor substrate comprises introducing a semiconductor substrate, a surface of the semiconductor substrate being wet with a water-soluble organic solvent, to the inside of a chamber, hermetically sealing the chamber and increasing a temperature inside the chamber to not lower than a critical temperature of the water-soluble organic solvent, thereby bringing the water-soluble organic solvent into a supercritical state, decreasing a pressure inside the chamber and changing the water-soluble organic solvent in the supercritical state to a gas, thereby discharging the water-soluble organic solvent from the chamber, starting a supply of an inert gas into the chamber as the pressure inside the chamber decreases to atmospheric pressure, and cooling the semiconductor substrate in a state where the inert gas exists inside the chamber.
US08950075B2
Compound action snips include first and second handles pivotally connected to each other, and first and second blades. The first handle includes first and second walls arranged opposite to each other. The second wall includes a recess. The first blade is mounted to the first handle. The second blade is mounted to the second handle. A fastener inserts through the first wall, the first blade, and the second wall. A fixing element is received into the recess and is threaded onto the fastener, so that a top surface defined on the fixing element is not exposed out of the second wall of the first handle.
US08950067B2
An electronic component device having a first sealing frame formed on a main substrate and a second sealing frame formed on a cover substrate, the first and second sealing frames being composed of a Ni film. A bonding section constituted by a Ni—Bi alloy is formed between the first and second sealing frames. For example, a Bi layer is formed on the first sealing frame, and then the first sealing frame and the second sealing frame are heated at a temperature of 300° C. for at least 10 seconds while applying pressure in the direction in which the first sealing frame and the second sealing frame are in close contact with each other, and thus the bonding section, which bonds the first sealing frame to the second sealing frame, is formed.
US08950055B2
An anchor for lightning protection systems include a base and pad that extend over a sufficient area and a sufficient bearing length to hold in shear and in tension against the weight, shear force, and moment of cables, points, and other components of a lightning protection systems. The mounting anchor is non-penetrating, and adheres to a vertical surface almost immediately without requiring damage to structures, long term support over days waiting for cure, and works in overhang situations as well. An integrated clip may be constructed with the base from sheet material. Adhesion of the base to a cover material on a wall or parapet may be promptly followed by snapping cable into clips formed monolithically with the base.
US08950048B2
A remanufactured planet carrier is disclosed having a first plate and a second plate spaced apart from and oriented generally parallel to the first plate. Supports join and support the first and second plates. The remanufactured planet carrier further has a plurality of first pin bores in the first plate and a plurality of second pin bores in the second plate. The first pin bores are parallel and generally aligned with the second pin bores. A cylindrical member extends from a central axis of the second plate away from the first plate with a shaft bore formed within the cylindrical member. The first and second pin bores and the shaft bore each have a surface layer with a hardness of at least about 180 BHN and a strength of at least about 500 MPa.
US08950036B2
A dust remover according to the present disclosure forms an air flow in a space formed between a charge-coupled device and a shutter unit, and removes dust on a surface of the charge-coupled device, the dust remover comprising an air injector having a plurality of air injecting holes; an air discharger which is installed on a surface facing the air injector, and has at least one air discharging hole which is smaller than the air injecting hole; and an exhausting dust collecting filter which is installed in the air discharger, and collects dust in the air being discharged.
US08950029B2
A support pillow comprises a pillow body having a medial region and two opposing arms that form a well region, a first side and a second side. The pillow body further includes an outer periphery and an inner periphery outlining the well region. The pillow body is constructed of a fill material and a cover enveloping the fill material. A center panel is constructed multiple pieces of fabric and is coupled to the two sides using stitching.
US08950028B2
An infection control bedding product such as a pillow, duvet, mattress, cushion or such like having a sealed cover and having a deformable filling material, may comprise a liquid impermeable air permeable microbial barrier vent. The vent includes an oleophobic expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) membrane extending past the perimeter of the aperture and a nonwoven layer extending past the perimeter of the aperture. A gasket may be bonded to the PTFE membrane, the nonwoven layer and the cover to form a liquid impermeable seal rendering the infection control bedding product liquid impermeable.
US08950025B2
A device for securing a pillow or other support to a bed includes a pocket configured to receive a pillow insert, a tail comprising a proximal end and a distal end with the tail connected to the pocket at the proximal end. The device further includes a retention element located near the distal end of the tail. The retention element is further configured to retain the pillow insert relative to the bed by tucking the retention element under the mattress of the bed.
US08950021B2
A retractable bunk or bed is disclosed. The retractable bunk can be used in a sleeper compartment so as to optimize space within the cab. The innovation can include a shaft around which a suitably strong, yet flexible, material bunk can be wound. Thus, in a closed or “hidden” state, the material can be rolled up around the shaft and stowed, for example behind a door or within a compartment as desired. In an open position, the material is extended in a horizontal manner and affixed to retain the “bunk” position.
US08950017B2
A protective apparel support (100) system is disclosed comprising a support frame configured to rest on the shoulders of a wearer, the support having a first shoulder member (104a), a second shoulder member (104b) and a shield (202) engagement portion. A shield (202) is selectively coupleable to the support and protective apparel (302) is coupled to the shield.
US08955148B1
A network accessible user interface system for managing computer security rights is provided. The user interface system may include a graphical user interface for displaying and managing access rights to computer resources on a computer system or network, a collapsible navigation tool, and an administrator authentication module. The graphical user interface may contain security matrices, each with at least two axes that display the resource and resource container hierarchy of the computer system and/or network, and also display the security principal hierarchy of the computer system and/or network, as well as the access rights the principals have to the corresponding resources on the computer system and/or network.
US08955139B2
A method, an apparatus, and a computer program product are disclosed that include tracking, using a data flow model of a program suitable for taint analysis of the program, information from sources of taint to entities in a heap using a model of the heap based on the program. The tracking is performed so that the information is relevant for taint propagation and is performed in a manner that is field-sensitive for the entities in the heap. The method, apparatus, and computer program product also include, based on output of the tracking, the operation of performing data-flow analysis to determine taint flow from the sources of the taint through data flow paths to sinks using the taint.
US08955136B2
Managing electronic messages comprises receiving a message, forwarding the message, determining that the forwarded message is infectious after the message has been forwarded and preventing the infectious forwarded message from spreading.
US08955134B2
A malware analysis system for automating cause and effect analysis of malware infections is provided. The malware analysis system monitors and records computer system activities. Upon being informed of a suspected malware infection, the malware analysis system creates a time-bounded snapshot of the monitored activities that were conducted within a time frame prior to the notification of the suspected malware infection. The malware analysis system may also create a time-bounded snapshot of the monitored activities that are conducted within a time frame subsequent to the notification of the suspected malware infection. The malware analysis system provides the created snapshot or snapshots for further analysis.
US08955131B2
A method for proactively detecting shared libraries suspected of association with malware includes the steps of determining one or more shared libraries loaded on an electronic device, determining that one or more of the shared libraries include suspicious shared libraries by determining that the shared library is associated with indications that the shared library may have been maliciously injected, loaded, and/or operating on the electronic device, and identifying the suspicious shared libraries to a reputation server.
US08955113B2
A device detects an impermissible behavior by a user device. The device further identifies a rule associated with the impermissible behavior and executes a response to the impermissible behavior based on the rule. The response restricts access of the user device to a service provided by or via a network device. The device also transmits, to the user device, a message that specifies the response. The device also verifies a termination of a cause of the impermissible behavior and restores the access of the user device to the service.
US08955109B1
Social engineering attacks are simulated to a user, by performing the steps of the attacks without actually performing any malicious activity. Educational security information is displayed to the user, based on the user's response to simulated social engineering attacks. If the user responds to a simulated social engineering attack in a manner indicating that the user is vulnerable, educational security information can be displayed that educates the user as to how to avoid being victimized. One or more security settings for protecting the user's computer from malware can be adjusted, based on the user's response to the simulating of social engineering attacks. Additionally, other factors can be adjusted based on the user's response to the simulating of social engineering attacks, such as a security hygiene rating and/or a level of monitoring activity concerning the user.
US08955107B2
In general, techniques are described for hierarchical application of security services with a network device. In particular, the network device receives security classification information that maps a security class to one or more computing devices. The security class identifies security capabilities of the computing devices. The network device also receives network traffic associated with the computing device and applies a set of patterns defined by a policy associated with the security class to the network traffic to detect a set of network attacks. Based on the application of the set of patterns, the network device forwards the network traffic. As a result of receiving security classification information, the network device may become aware of the security capabilities of the computing device and only apply those patterns required to augment these detected security capabilities, thereby preventing application of overlapping security services through application of these services in a hierarchical manner.
US08955101B2
The present disclosure discloses an upper-order computer, a lower-order computer, a monitoring system and a monitoring method, so as to eliminate the disadvantages of low standardization level and small scale in manually setting and adjusting performance parameters. The upper-order computer includes a central control module and an information interacting module, the information interacting module including a human-computer interacting unit, and the central control module including a processing unit, a display control unit and a parameter configuring unit, wherein the processing unit is adapted for controlling a lower-order computer by sending control commands; the display control unit is adapted for processing effective operating data acquired from the lower-order computer, and is adapted for instructing the human-computer interacting unit to perform presenting; and the parameter configuring unit is adapted for configuring parameters of the lower-order computer by sending parameter configuring commands. It can be seen that the upper-order computer is capable of presenting the processed effective operating data and configuring parameters. Compared with directly setting and adjusting the controller by human, the technical solution of the present disclosure has the advantages of high standardization level and large scale.
US08955096B1
A computer-implemented method for filtering Internet access may include: 1) identifying a domain-name-system request from a client system, 2) identifying a filtering policy for the client system, 3) bundling the filtering policy with the domain-name-system request, and then 4) forwarding the bundled domain-name-system request to a domain-name-system server. Various other methods and systems are also disclosed.
US08955093B2
A network system includes a security device and a network access device. The network access device is to receive a packet from a source node destined to a destination node, and to examine a data structure maintained by the network access device to determine whether the data structure stores a data member having a predetermined value, the data member indicating whether the packet should undergo security processing. If the data member matches the predetermined value, the packet is transmitted to a security device associated with the network access device to allow the security device to perform content inspection, and in response to a response received from the security device, the packet is routed to the destination node dependent upon the response. The packet is routed to the destination node without forwarding the packet to the security device.
US08955088B2
An apparatus comprising a policy enforcement point (PEP) configured to enforce firewall policies in a network, and a policy decision point (PDP) coupled to the PEP and configured to manage the PEP based on at least one firewall policy option received from at least one node. Also disclosed is a network component comprising at least one processor configured to implement a method comprising receiving a request from a node regarding a firewall policy entry, authenticating the node, processing the request to manage a firewall using a firewall control protocol, and sending a reply to the node regarding processing the request. Also disclosed is a method comprising signaling a PDP to establish a session associated with a source address and a requested protocol, and receiving an indication when the session is allowed.
US08955087B2
Method and system for transferring replicated information from source storage to destination storage
Machine implemented method and system for transferring replicated information from a first storage location managed by a storage operating system at a first storage system node and accessible to a client computing system to a second storage location managed by a second storage system node are provided. A resource pool having a plurality of tokens is maintained for authorizing a replication engine to transfer replicated information from the first storage location to the second storage location. The number of available tokens is increased when traffic due to client requests for accessing the first storage location is less than a first threshold level. The number of available tokens is decreased for reducing transfer of information via the replication engine, when latency in responding to the client requests reaches a second threshold value and the traffic due to client requests reaches the first threshold value.
US08955077B1
A method of authenticating a client to a service via a network includes retrieving a client ID and a lockstep code from a token interfaced with a client device, sending the client ID and the lockstep code to an authentication server as part of a verification request, at the authentication server, comparing the lockstep code to a confirmation lockstep code relating to the client ID, based on the comparison, sending an authentication message from the authentication server, at the authentication server, generating a new confirmation lockstep code, sending the new confirmation lockstep code to the client device, and updating the lockstep code of the token to an updated lockstep code that matches the new confirmation lockstep code.
US08955070B2
Apparatus which control modification of passwords by implementing a procedure by which end user designates, in advance, a universe of social media contacts such as friends on social media web sites such as Facebook and Linkedln. Contacts so identified are used as a set of potential identity verifiers. In order to enable a reset or modification of an account password, a subset of the universe is required to assert that they have verified the identity of the user requesting to reset a password. Such verification can be accomplished by varying means by those to whom an inquiry has been directed. Te apparatus may be in the form of a computer system or a computer readable storage medium.
US08955067B2
A system and method for providing access to data of a user or services relevant to a user. A customer data key is created by a server that is specific to an application, the user of the application, and the device upon which the application resides. The server may receive an application programming interface call to create the customer data key; however, any call accessing or affecting user-specific data which does not contain a valid and authorized customer data key may be rejected. To authorize access to the offered data or services, the user conducts an entirely separate transaction not mediated by the application. During this separate transaction, the customer data key may be activated, permitting access to the data or services using the activated customer data key.
US08955056B2
A terminal to assign permission to an application includes a storage device to store an application list including information of applications authorized to receive manager permission, and an application processor to receive a request for the manager permission from the application and to determine to allow the manager permission to the application in response to a determination that the application is included in the application list. A method that uses a processor to assign permission to an application includes receiving a request for manager permission from the application, determining, using the processor, whether the application is included in an application list including information of applications authorized to receive manager permission, and determining whether to allow the manager permission to the application if the application is included in the application list.
US08955044B2
A method of generating a time managed challenge-response test is presented. The method identifies a geometric shape having a volume and generates an entry object of the time managed challenge-response test. The entry object is overlaid onto the geometric shape, such that the entry object is distributed over a surface of the geometric shape, and a portion of the entry object is hidden at any point in time. The geometric shape is rotated, which reveals the portion of the entry object that is hidden. A display region on a display is identified for rendering the geometric shape and the geometric shape is presented in the display region of the display.
US08955039B2
Generally, this disclosure describes devices, methods and systems for securely providing context sensor data to mobile platform applications. The method may include configuring sensors to provide context data, the context data associated with a mobile device; providing an application programming interface (API) to a sensor driver, the sensor driver configured to control the sensors; providing a trusted execution environment (TEE) operating on the mobile device, the TEE configured to host the sensor driver and restrict control and data access to the sensor driver and to the sensors; generating a request for the context data through the API, the request generated by an application associated with the mobile device; receiving, by the application, the requested context data and a validity indicator through the API; verifying, by the application, the requested context data based on the validity indicator; and adjusting a policy associated with the application based on the verified context data.
US08955035B2
Techniques to allow a security policy language to accommodate anonymous credentials are described. A policy statement in a security policy language can reference an anonymous credential. When the policy statement is evaluated to decide whether to grant access to a resource mediated by the policy statement, the anonymous credential is used. The policy language can be implemented to allow one anonymous credential to delegate access-granting rights to another anonymous credential. Furthermore, an anonymous credential can be re-randomized to avoid linkage between uses of the anonymous credential, which can compromise anonymity.
US08955034B2
The present invention relates to a security module for use in management of a TR-069 Object Model of a device. The Object Model comprises a plurality of parameters for selection by a view selector module based on credentials and for defining thereby an object model view associated to the device. The security module comprises means for associating the object model view to a security policy and means for configuring the security attributes of the security policy on an intermediate network entity.
US08955032B2
All of the transit services that each device is expected to provide are determined and contrasted with the transit configuration of each device. Because the transit configuration of each device may be state-dependent, the service items within each application service are processed in sequential order. Sequences of service items are associated with connection groups, and each of the routes associated with each connection group is determined based on the sequential order of the service items. The configuration of each device along each route is processed to determine the services that will be permitted or denied, based on its current configuration. Each desired transit service item is compared to the transit configuration provided by each device to identify any inconsistencies and/or violations.
US08955028B2
A system for interfacing external data to IPTV and a method of the same are provided, which register unique numbers of mobile phones, other data communication devices and IPTVs in conjunction with an external data transmission server in advance and have an SMS server, a mobile communication company's server and a mail server and external data transmission server linked with one another, and which transmits at least one of text, moving image data, and still image data to a desired mobile phone or IPTV according to user's setting for its output. This present invention can interface external data received by various data communication devices such as a mobile phone, an email server, and a mobile communication company's server to IPTV for its output onto the screen according user's setting, and establishes an output time of the external data in advance by a user to output it at a time of high concentration.
US08955023B2
A transfer device includes: a first network connection control section that controls connection to a first network enabling transfer of content data and/or control data using a first address assigned by a key device in the network; a second network connection control section that controls connection to a second network enabling transfer of content data and/or control data using a second address assigned by a device having a routing function; and an address table that stores the correspondence between the first address of devices on the first network connected via the first network connection control section and the second address of the devices on the second network connected via the second network connection control section.
US08955007B2
A system for and method of providing subscriber voting interaction. The system and method may include outputting program content data via a network, wherein the program content data comprises a plurality of images, receiving, from one or more of a plurality of subscriber systems, voting data that indicates a subscriber's vote for at least one of the plurality of images, aggregating the received voting data, and outputting, to the plurality of subscriber systems, the aggregated voting data via the network.
US08955004B2
At least one of a probability density for a video and a granularity mapping for the video based upon the probability density are generated at an analytics server. The probability density is calculated according to a predetermined set of points in the video and a pseudo-randomly generated set of points in the video. The probability density is non-degenerate. The granularity mapping for the video provides a mapping of the probability density to the video. The at least one of the probability density and the granularity mapping are sent from the analytics server to a video content server so that the video content server sends the video and the at least one of the probability density, and the granularity mapping to each of a plurality of clients. A set of beacons is generated by the each of the plurality of the clients according to the probability density and the granularity mapping.
US08955000B2
A disc drive that includes: a housing configured to receive a tray, a pickup mounted on the tray; a connector installed on the housing for outputting signals obtained from the optical pickup; a ribbon cable that includes a first end which is connected to the connector, including a plurality of wire layers, and a part installed adjacent to a side of a body of the housing; and at least one penetration hole formed in a side of the body of the housing so as to reduce a capacitive coupling between the ribbon cable and the body of the housing.
US08954997B2
A mechanism is provided for providing resource affinity for multi-queue network adapters via dynamic reconfiguration. A device driver allocates an initial queue pair within a memory. The device driver determines whether workload of the data processing system has risen above a predetermined high threshold. Responsive to the workload rising above the predetermined high threshold, the device driver allocates and initializes an additional queue pair in the memory. The device driver programs a receive side scaling (RSS) mechanism in a network adapter to allow for dynamic insertion of an additional processing engine associated with the additional queue pair. The device driver enables transmit tuple hashing to the additional queue pair.
US08954995B2
A software transactional memory system is provided that creates an array of transactional locks for each array object that is accessed by transactions. The system divides the array object into non-overlapping portions and associates each portion with a different transactional lock. The system acquires transactional locks for transactions that access corresponding portions of the array object. By doing so, different portions of the array object can be accessed by different transactions concurrently. The system may use a shared shadow or undo copy for accesses to the array object.
US08954994B2
The present invention enables “unit-of-order”, which allows a message producer to group messages into a single unit. It guarantees that messages are not only delivered to consumers in order, they are also are processed in order. The unit-of-order will be delivered to consumers as one unit and only one consumer will process messages from the unit at a time. The processing of a single message is complete when it is acknowledged, committed, recovered, or rolled back. Until message processing for a message is complete, the remaining unprocessed messages for that unit-of-order are blocked.
US08954990B2
Compact event code messages are generated by sources, which may include human users, system components or any other sources. The event code messages include an event type, a source type, and a date. The messages are initially processed based on this information. The messages also include payload data that is not considered during initial processing, rendering initial processing fast and efficient. The messages may then be listed or queued and further processed by specialize event handlers, which may consider the payload data and may draw upon other resources. The system components, including the event handlers may be increased or decreased as needed and dynamically as messages are received and processed. New events, rules for event processing, event handlers and other system components may be added at any time to expend the number and types of events that can be handled, and the particular handling performed on them.
US08954988B1
An embodiment of the invention comprising a method is associated with an API marketplace, wherein one or more API providers can each supply an API of a specified type, and each provider has a set of ToS for its API of the specified type. The method includes, responsive to an API consumer having a need for an API of the specified type, obtaining the ToS of each of the API providers. The method further includes implementing an automated process to determine differences between the ToS of a given API provider, and a ToS required by the API consumer. The ToS differences determined for respective API providers are used to decide whether to select a particular one of the API providers to supply an API of the specified type to the API consumer.
US08954981B2
For optimizing resources for a parallel data integration job, a job request is received, which specifies a parallel data integration job to deploy in a grid. Grid resource utilizations are predicted for hypothetical runs of the specified job on respective hypothetical grid resource configurations. This includes automatically predicting grid resource utilizations by a resource optimizer module responsive to a model based on a plurality of actual runs of previous jobs. A grid resource configuration is selected for running the parallel data integration job, which includes the optimizer module automatically selecting a grid resource configuration responsive to the predicted grid resource utilizations and an optimization criterion.
US08954979B1
Machine implemented method and system is provided for managing resources within an operating environment having a plurality of computing systems and a plurality of virtual machines. The resources are monitored and resource utilization is compared to configured threshold values for managing over utilization. If resource utilization reaches the threshold value, then the resource is identified as being over utilized. One or more data structures are used to display and verify the over utilization on a display device. The root cause of the over utilization is identified and then corrective action may be taken to reduce the over utilization.
US08954976B2
Systems, methods, and apparatus, including computer program products for receiving a content transfer request that includes a first set of provisioning attributes that characterizes one or more operational objectives of a first item of content; and processing the content transfer request to allocate resources of a storage environment to store the first item of content.
US08954974B1
A system and technique for adaptive lock list searching of waiting threads includes logic executable by a processor to: determine an average service time for a lock associated with a shared computing resource; determine an average search time for selecting a thread to next receive the lock from a plurality of threads waiting for the lock; sum the average service time and the average search time; apply a search factor to the summed average service time and average search time to obtain a target search time for searching the waiting threads for selecting the next thread for obtaining the lock; determine a quantity of waiting threads to consider for next obtaining the lock based on the target search time and the average search time, the quantity being less than a total quantity of waiting threads; and identify the next thread to obtain the lock from the quantity.
US08954970B2
A management apparatus for managing a production apparatus that executes a plurality of processes in accordance with a production plan detects an amount of a release-forgotten memory area that is kept allocated on a memory of the production apparatus by each process even after completion of the process. The management apparatus determines an amount of remaining memory based on the detected amount of the release-forgotten memory area and retrieves a process executable with the amount of remaining memory. The management apparatus determines a process to be executed next in accordance with either a result of the retrieval executed based on the detected amount of the release-forgotten memory area or the production plan and controls the production apparatus to execute the determined process.
US08954958B2
A method of modifying a virtual application configuration to include modifications made at runtime by a virtual application that is implemented by a first virtualized application file that was created previously using the virtual application configuration. At runtime, the virtual application implemented by the first virtualized application file stores modifications to its configuration in a sandbox memory location. The method includes reading the modifications from the sandbox memory location. Then, the modifications are written to the virtual application configuration. The modified virtual application configuration is then used to create a second virtualized application file that includes the modifications stored in the sandbox memory location.
US08954948B2
An electronic module and method for updating an electronic device wherein the electronic module is connected to a circuit board having one or more memory interfaces which may be embodied as processors in the electronic device. One or more semiconductor devices electrically communicate with an electrical circuit within the module. A programmable memory device including non-volatile memory electrically communicates with the electrical circuit of the electronic module. The programmable memory device includes a program having code saved therein. The code defines a multiplicity of functions for the electronic module for communication between the electronic module and a memory interface or processor of the electronic device. Electrical connection elements are attached to a substrate on a bottom side of the electronic module for electrically connecting the electrical circuit of the electronic module to the circuit board for communication between the programmable memory device and the memory interface or processor.
US08954945B2
A computer program product is provided for splitting a live-range of a variable in frequently executed regions of program instructions. The live-range of a variable is split into multiple sub-ranges, each of which can be assigned to a different register or spilled into memory. The amount of spill code is reduced in frequently used regions of code by coalescing the live ranges based on profile information obtained after splitting the live ranges at every join and fork point in a control flow graph.
US08954941B2
Method of generating respective instruction compaction schemes for subsets of instructions to be processed by a programmable processor, comprising the steps of a) receiving at least one input code sample representative for software to be executed on the programmable processor, the input code comprising a plurality of instructions defining a first set of instructions (S1), b) initializing a set of removed instructions as empty (S3), c) determining the most compact representation of the first set of instructions (S4) d) comparing the size of said most compact representation with a threshold value (S5), e) carrying out steps e1 to e3 if the size is larger than said threshold value, e1) determining which instruction of the first set of instructions has a highest coding cost (S6), e2) removing said instruction having the highest coding cost from the first set of instructions and (S7), e3) adding said instruction to the set of removed instructions (S8), f) repeating steps b-f, wherein the first set of instructions is formed by the set of removed instructions (S9, S10).
US08954938B2
A system includes determination of first coordinates in a repository coordinate system associated with a seed component corresponding to a target build result of a first code building system, the seed component comprising a projection method between the repository coordinate system and a variant coordinate system of the first code building system, determination of second coordinates in the variant coordinate system, the second coordinates associated with an execution environment of the target build result, determination of third coordinates in the repository coordinate system based on the first coordinates, the second coordinates and the projection method, and association of the target build result with the third coordinates.
US08954937B2
An image detection program creating system comprise a parameter setting module, an image loading module, a programming module, and a program conversion module. The parameter setting module sets parameters of a Dimensional Measuring Interface Specification (DMIS). The image loading module loads a 3D image. The programming module programs the DMIS program according to the parameters of the DMIS and the 3D image. The program conversion module converts the compiled DMIS into an image detection program.
US08954934B1
Improving user friendliness of a non-executable human-readable test scenario by removing unessential test steps including: receiving a non-executable human-readable test scenario including unessential test steps; generating a graph of screens referred to by the non-executable human-readable test scenario; identifying a side branch that is not mandatory for proper operation of the non-executable human-readable test scenario; and removing description of the non-mandatory side branch from the non-executable human-readable test scenario.
US08954931B2
Various embodiments include at least one or systems, methods, and software providing abilities to automatically generate a test plan that mitigates risk involved in testing less than an entirety of a software system following modification. Some embodiments operate to allow a user to influence the scope of an optimized test plan while also reducing a number of tests and test execution effort involved. Such embodiments may identify portions of the software system to test and portions of the software system that will not be tested in a manner that reduces a total testing effort involved. Reductions in testing effort are performed in generation of the test plan in view of testing preferences which are utilized not only to reduce the total effort in executing a test plan, but also does so to optimize the test plan.
US08954930B2
A system, computer readable medium, and method for automatically testing computer objects affected by an update package. The exemplary method may compare computer objects/instances in an update package with those of the installed version of the computer application. A set of computer objects that have changed in the update package as compared to the installed version may be generated. The changes to each of the computer objects in the set of changed objects may be analyzed to determine if an automated test is related to the changed object. If an object has a related automated test assigned to it, the object may be placed in a separate list for testing. The automated tests of the changed objects in the separate list may be organized into a test plan. The automated tests may be executed according to the test plan. The system may have servers and computer processors to implement the method.
US08954929B2
A unit testing system allows testing of multiple types of method calls using an unmodified software application module. The system dynamically copies byte code of the tested method, clones the byte code, and executes the cloned byte code. During cloning, the system instruments the code so that method calls are redirected into a system method, where the system can determine whether a mocked method should be called instead. The result is that the developer does not need to modify the original methods in order to redirect method calls to mock methods. The developer can simply reference a test module of the unit testing system and easily write tests that redirect any method they wish. Thus, the unit testing system provides a framework for building more useful unit tests that cause less interference with production-ready code.
US08954925B2
Disclosed herein is user augmented reverse engineering, where, in one embodiment, during the generation of a graphical representation of a codebase, database, binary and the like, users may be provided with an option to ‘focus’. For example, during the graphical generation of a large codebase, a user may select one or things to limit the extent of the graphical representation generation. In another embodiment, a graphical generation may encounter one or more pre-defined boundary conditions. Upon encountering a boundary condition, the generation of the graphical representation may determine that it is unable to complete the graphical generation within a pre-defined set of requirements without additional instructions. Thus, the graphical generation may complete and then prompt a user for solutions to any boundary conditions it has encountered, or the generation may pause at each boundary condition it encounters and prompt a user for a solution to the boundary condition.
US08954923B2
In accordance with embodiments, there are provided mechanisms and methods for facilitating dynamic interaction with development applications and tools in an on-demand services environment in a multi-tenant environment according to one embodiment. In one embodiment and by way of example, a method includes receiving, from log files, historical user preferences and usage data relating to a user and one or more development tools for software development at a computing device. The historical user preferences and usage data may be based on past acts of the user and recorded at the log files. The method may further include generating a model based on the historical user preference and usage data, determining one or more predictions from the model. The predictions may include one or more of: an ordering of the development tools, a filtering of a plurality of features of one or more of the development tools, and a usage-based customization of the one or more development tools. The method may further include providing the development tools for display to the user based on the predictions.
US08954921B2
A system and method to automatically and continuously update the urgency rating of a backlog item associated with a technical debt item in a software development project are described. The technical debt represents potential additional work or rework associated with current code. The method includes a user defining a plurality of components that comprise the software development project. The method also includes a processor associating the technical debt with one or more components of the plurality of components, and the processor updating the urgency of the backlog item associated with the technical debt according to a function based on a development event associated with at least one of the one or more components.
US08954919B1
A calculation method for generating a layout pattern in a photomask includes at least the following steps. A two-dimensional design layout including several geometric patterns distributed in a plane is provided to a computer system. The computer system is used to mark portions of the geometric patterns and generate at least one marked geometric pattern and at least one non-marked geometric pattern. The marked geometric pattern is then simulated and corrected by the computer system so as to generate a 3-D design layout. Through the simulation and correction, the marked geometric pattern and the non-marked geometric pattern are arranged alternately along an axis orthogonal to the plane. The 3-D design layout is outputted to a mask-making system afterwards.
US08954913B1
One method disclosed herein involves, among other things, generating a set of mandrel mask rules, block mask rules and a virtual, software-based non-mandrel-metal mask. The method also includes creating a set of virtual non-mandrel mask rules that is a replica of the mandrel mask rules, generating a set of metal routing design rules based upon the mandrel mask rules, the block mask rules and the virtual non-mandrel mask rules, generating the circuit routing layout based upon the metal routing design rules, decomposing the circuit routing layout into a mandrel mask pattern and a block mask pattern, generating a first set of mask data corresponding to the mandrel mask pattern, and generating a second set of mask data corresponding to the block mask pattern.
US08954907B1
Techniques for emulating a logic block in an integrated circuit (IC) design are provided. The techniques include identifying a plurality of logic elements that are connectable to formal logic block. These logic elements are connected to perform logic functions associated with the logic block. The logic block may be a physical logic block on one IC design and a non-existent logic block on another IC design. The logic elements and associated connections form an emulated logic block.
US08954899B2
The present disclosure describes a method of calibrating a contour. The method includes designing an anchor pattern, printing the anchor pattern on a substrate, collecting scanning electron microscope (SEM) data of the printed anchor pattern on the substrate, wherein the SEM data includes a SEM image of the printed anchor pattern on the substrate, converting the SEM image of the printed anchor pattern on the substrate into a SEM contour of the printed anchor pattern, analyzing the SEM contour of the printed anchor pattern, and aligning the SEM contour of the anchor pattern to form the calibrated SEM contour.
US08954896B2
In certain exemplary embodiments, data representative of a proximity heuristic specifying a plurality of levels of an object detection zone associated with a display screen is maintained, an object is detected within the object detection zone, one or more of the levels are selected based on one or more attributes of the object, and an action associated with the selected one or more levels is performed. In certain examples, the action includes modifying a graphical user interface view displayed on the display screen.
US08954894B2
Apparatus, systems, and methods may operate to receive a symbol recognition process gesture indicating a starting point of symbol entry, to recognize a series of symbols as they are received subsequent to receiving the symbol recognition process gesture, and to instantiate the series of symbols as a symbol set upon receiving an indication that reception of the series of symbols is complete. Instantiating can serve to indicate an ending point of the symbol entry, and to provide the symbol set as a source of input to a process associated with an icon into which the symbol set has been moved, such as by dragging and dropping, or flicking. Additional apparatus, systems, and methods are disclosed.
US08954891B2
A preferred contact group centric interface for a communication device can be used to facilitate communications by a user. The user interface can be arranged to activate from a user's “home page” on the display, from an idle screen that is accessed after a timeout period expires, or any other appropriate mechanism that activates the preferred contact group centric experience. A user selects the preferred contact group from among an array of the user's contacts. Once the contact group is configured, a minimal number of navigation/selection features is necessary to activate any number of communication modes available to the contacts. The contact group is configured such that simple and quick navigation between the contact members is achieved. The contact group can be presented in 2D and 3D arrangements, in any number of list or geometric configurations. A pricing plan can optionally be tied to each member of the contact group.
US08954890B2
An electronic device includes a display screen, and computing hardware to execute a software product. Executing the software product results in generating and rendering a graphical user interface on the display screen to facilitate user interaction. The graphical user interface, when rendered, presents one or more graphical objects, a pointer object configured to be movable over one or more of the one or more graphical objects, and configured to invoke a menu list containing one or more user selectable options as the pointer object is clicked or tapped over the one or more of the one or more of the graphical objects. A user selectable option is selected the pointer object swipes a touch sensitive object and the software product can maintain an effect corresponding to the selected option to be applied to the graphical objects and enable a change in status of the graphical objects.
US08954889B2
The slide bar display control device according to the present invention includes, a display means which indicates a first slide bar including a first slider and a first bar, an input means which can select an arbitrary part of the first slide bar shown on the display means based on touch operation, and a control means which controls the display means and the input means, wherein, when the control means detects that a first operation has been performed in a state that the first slider shown on the display means is being touched in the input means, the display means indicates a second slide bar including a second slider and a second bar, and wherein the second slider is a slider different in a variation amount of a set value per unit moving distance from the first slider.
US08954888B2
The present disclosure provides an electronic device, the device including, processor, a display, and an interface configured to, detect non-contact proximity of an operation member, determine whether the member is within a first selection region corresponding to a first selection object; and display a second selection object adjacent to the first selection object when it is determined that the member is within the first selection region.
US08954880B1
A method of operating a graphical user interface employs an input control enabling a user to provide an input value for a field. The method includes, during a first period of use of the graphical user interface by the user, automatically presenting a predetermined first input value as a default input value for the field. This may be a system default value for example. During the first period, the values provided by the user are monitored to identify a distinct second input value receiving at least a threshold use by the user. Then during a subsequent second period, based on the threshold use of the second input value during the first period, the second input value is automatically presented as the default input value for the field.
US08954879B2
This disclosure describes a system in which individual employee records can be updated across multiple services by an administrator at the interface to a particular service. Multiple services may be provided with this capability. This will eliminate the need in the current art for a central directory that contains a service description that will be common across all services. The technology eliminates the need for the development of this directory and the training of administrators in its interface. Administrators may utilize their training in one service interface to update records across multiple services. This will enable the more rapid development of solutions utilizing services from multiple vendors. Administrators need not be trained on interfaces for all services but can apply routine global updates from a convenient and familiar interface.
US08954872B2
A method is disclosed that provides, by mapping logic, output to a selected display of a plurality of displays forming an arrangement, where the selected display provides a visual indication in response to the output. The visual indication indicates that the selected display is ready to be mapped to an image data portion corresponding to the selected display's physical position within the arrangement. The method maps the image data portion to the selected display. The image data portion is stored in a frame buffer, and is mapped in response to input indicating the selected display's physical position. The frame buffer stores a single large surface image as a plurality of image data portions, where each image data portion is mapped to a corresponding display of the plurality of displays. An apparatus is also disclosed, that operates in accordance with the method.
US08954871B2
User-centric widgets and dashboards are automatically modified to reflect a user's goals and needs.
US08954870B2
Systems and methods for extending a visualization platform are disclosed. A user may create a visualization project created. One or more properties for a non-native widget established by a developer of the non-native widget may be received from the project. Such properties may designate a name or a type of data that the non-native widget is capable of processing. Responsive to an instruction received from the user of the visualization authoring environment, a source of data to be processed by the non-native widget or a destination of data produced by the non-native widget to be processed by other widgets may be established. The appearance or behavior of the non-native widget may be rendered based at least in part on a value available from the source of the data or the appearance or behavior of one or more other widgets may be rendered based at least in part on data produced by the non-native widget.
US08954863B2
In one embodiment, a method includes receiving information from a user in a collaboration network, the information including a unit of content, a title, an indication of one or more entities in the collaboration network allowed to access the unit of content, and for each of the entities in the collaboration network allowed to access the unit of content, an indication of a permission level with respect to the access. The permission level includes view, comment, edit, or share. The method further includes determining a format for presentation of the unit of content based at least in part on the permission levels indicated for the one or more entities in the collaboration network allowed to access the unit of content, and publishing the unit of content and the title for the unit of content to the collaboration network in the determined format and according to the information.
US08954861B1
A method of facilitating the self-administration of a directory of available modules on a group's syndicated customizable content document or start page is presented. The method includes presenting an initial list of modules to an administrator of a group, enabling the administrator to identify module selection information that identifies criteria for inclusion and/or exclusion of one or more modules in a directory, and storing the module selection information identified by the administrator. When a user of the group accesses a customized content document, the user is presented with a modified list of available modules based on the module selection information. Using this method, the administrator is capable of excluding modules from a global list, including only a specific subset of modules, or a combination of both. A system of carrying out the method is also presented.
US08954855B2
An information processing device includes: a storage unit; a first display control unit; and a demanding unit. The storage unit that stores attribute data representing specified attribute of contents and category data representing a category of the attribute correlated to each other. The first display control unit that provides controls for displaying information for a selected attribute and for displaying, in a categorized state, information for related attributes correlated to the same category as that of the attribute on a correlation display screen. The demanding unit that demands data search by referring to the correlated attribute selected corresponding to information selected from among those displayed on the correlation display screen to an information provision device.
US08954854B2
Systems and techniques for location based sound management. Information associated with a display is defined or selected based on user inputs and sounds associated with responsive locations of the display. Defining of the information associated with the display may be based at least in part on user touches to a touch screen display. Parameters for playback are also selected, such as a number of audio channels, based on user inputs that may similarly comprise user touches to the touch screen display. Playback parameters may be changed during playback based on user inputs occurring during playback.
US08954851B2
A streaming video interface component receives video frames from a streaming driver before the frames are received by a consuming application. The streaming video interface component provides the video frames to a video effect rendering component which renders video effects selected by a user. The video frames with the rendered video effects are then provided back to the streaming interface component which thereafter provides them to the consuming application.
US08954849B2
A method for supporting communication among avatars representing users in a virtual world shared by a plurality of users' client terminals and a server connected with each other through a network. The method includes the steps of: accumulating statistical information, which includes (i) a combination of a component of a message transmitted by one or more avatars and avatar motion matching the component, and (ii) a degree of usage of the combination; generating a keyword group from the components of a message transmitted by the one or more avatars in response to the transmission of the message; searching through the statistical information; obtaining one or more avatar motion candidates; and presenting the candidates to the user of the avatar. A system for supporting communication among avatars and a communication support server device in a virtual world are also provided.
US08954846B2
A communication apparatus including: a positional information storing portion which stores positional information of content-related information; a content-related-information obtaining portion which obtains the content-related information; a web-page generating portion which generates, using the content-related information, a web page including first information; a web-page storing portion which has a storage device store the web page, the storage device being accessible from an external device; an assigning portion which assigns web-page positional information to the web page such that the external device is allowed to access to the web page; a recording-page generating portion which generates a recording page on which is described second information; a positional-information adding portion which adds the web-page positional information to the recording page; and a recording controller which controls a recording section configured to perform recording on a recording medium, such that the recording section records the recording page.
US08954842B2
A method for managing multiple columns in a document. The method includes obtaining a text stream from the document; obtaining a current fill limit associated with an initial column of the multiple columns; placing, using a layout engine, the text stream within the multiple columns according to the current fill limit; identifying, after placing the text stream, a first fill level of a final column of the multiple columns; calculating a first difference between the current fill limit and the first fill level of the final column; calculating, in response to the first difference exceeding a tolerance, a revised fill limit based on the current fill limit; placing, using the layout engine, the text stream within the multiple columns according to the revised fill limit.
US08954828B2
According to an embodiment, a memory controller includes: a coding unit that performs an error correction coding process for user data to generate first to n-th parities and performs the error correction coding process for each of the first to n-th parities to generate first to n-th external parities; and a decoding unit that performs an error correction decoding process using the user data, the first to n-th parities, and the first to n-th external parities. A generator polynomial used to generate an i-th parity is selected on the basis of a generator polynomial used to generate the first to (i−1)-th parities.
US08954823B2
A method for data storage includes storing data in a memory that includes one or more memory units, each memory unit including memory blocks. The stored data is compacted by copying at least a portion of the data from a first memory block to a second memory block, and subsequently erasing the first memory block. Upon detecting a failure in the second memory block after copying the portion of the data and before erasure of the first memory block, the portion of the data is recovered by reading the portion from the first memory block.
US08954822B2
An error control system uses an error control code that corresponds to an error density location profile of a storage medium. The system includes an encoder configured to produce one or more codewords from data using an error control code generator matrix corresponding to the error density location profile of the storage medium. The system also includes a decoder configured to produce decoded data from one or more codewords using an error control code parity-check matrix corresponding to the error density location profile of the storage medium, where columns of the parity-check matrix are associated with corresponding data bits of the storage medium, rows of the parity-check matrix are associated with check bits, and each matrix element of the parity-check matrix having a predefined value indicates a connection between a particular data bit and a particular check bit.
US08954813B2
According to one embodiment, two memory systems each including a memory and a controller are connected via a communication line. The controller includes a testing unit that performs a self-test process on the memory, a communication unit that communicates with the counterpart controller, and a status output unit. The communication unit performs a startup synchronization process which is performed before the self-test process and a termination synchronization process which is performed after the self-test process. The testing unit obtains a comprehensive test result from the test results of the two memory systems, and the status output unit of one memory system outputs the comprehensive test result.
US08954810B2
Execution statistics are gathered that represent results of execution of a validation check that evaluates code performance within an executing application. A determination is made as to whether the gathered execution statistics for the execution of the validation check match configured criteria to disable the validation check. The validation check is programmatically disabled in response to determining that the gathered execution statistics for the execution of the validation check match the configured criteria to disable the validation check.
US08954808B1
A computer-implemented method for performing input/output path failovers may include identifying a computing system with a plurality of input/output paths to a storage array. The computer-implemented method may additionally include detecting a failure of a first input/output path within the plurality of input/output paths. The computer-implemented method may also include receiving a communication from the storage array indicating that a storage processor within the first input/output path is unavailable. The computer-implemented method may further include selecting at least one alternate input/output path within the plurality of input/output paths that does not include the storage processor. The computer-implemented method may additionally include reconfiguring the computing system to access the storage array via the alternate input/output path. Various other methods, systems, and computer-readable media are also disclosed.
US08954807B2
A fault-based software testing method and system are provided. The fault-based software testing method includes: generating a plurality of error programs by injecting faults into a testing target program; grouping the generated error programs into a plurality of groups with respect to respective test data, and selecting representative error programs with respect to the respective groups; and when an error is detected in the execution result of the representative error programs with respect to the corresponding test data, determining that errors are detected in all the error programs of the corresponding group.
US08954805B2
A computer booting method is provided for a computer system. The method comprises performing a power-on-self test. When the test result shows no error on the BIOS, a booting procedure is executed. When the test result shows the BIOS is damaged, whether the computer system stores a backup file of the BIOS is determined. When the computer system stores the backup file, the central processing unit reads the data of backup file and write it into a BIOS system memory and a reboot process is performed. When there is no backup file in the computer system, the computer system is connected to an internet server and downloads a BIOS backup file to the system main memory from the internet server. The central processing unit reads the BIOS backup file and write it into the BIOS system memory and a reboot process is formed.
US08954800B1
Systems, methods, and machine-readable media for initiating a recovery mode to execute a recovery mode procedure is discussed. The system may include a main processor, an embedded controller, timer circuitry, and recovery circuitry. The recovery circuitry may be configured to receive an indication to execute a recovery mode procedure and, in response to receiving the indication to execute the recovery mode procedure, to trigger a first time period and a second time period. The timer circuitry may be configured to shut off the embedded controller for the first time period, wherein when the first time period expires, the embedded controller is further configured to boot from embedded controller recovery code and shut off the main processor for the second time period, wherein when the second time period expires, the main processor may be configured to boot from main processor recovery code and execute the recovery mode procedure.
US08954799B2
A circuit for displaying failure information of a power supply unit supplying power to a central processing unit includes a controller including a random access memory (RAM) to store failure information of the power supply unit, a DC power circuit, a processing unit connected to the controller for reading the fault reasons stored in the RAM, and a display unit to display the fault reasons. When the power supply unit does not operate, the DC power circuit supplies power to the controller, such that fault reasons stored in the RAM will not be lost.
US08954796B1
In one aspect, a method includes recovering at least one logical unit of a consistency group in a journal-based replication system without interruption of replication of other logical units in the consistency group, the at least one logical unit being one of a physical logical unit or a virtual logical unit.
US08954795B2
A method for responding to a failure of hardware locus of at a communication installation having a plurality of control apparatuses for controlling a plurality of processes distributed among a plurality of hardware loci, the hardware loci including at least one spare hardware locus, includes the steps of: (a) Shifting control of a failed process from an initial control apparatus to an alternate control apparatus located at an alternate hardware locus than the failed hardware locus. The failed process is a respective process controlled by the initial control apparatus located at the failed hardware locus. (b) Relocating the respective control apparatuses located at the failed hardware locus to a spare hardware locus. (c) Shifting control of the failed process from the alternate control apparatus to the initial control apparatus relocated at the spare hardware locus.
US08954789B2
Method and system for performing recovery for a replicated copy of a storage space presented as a logical object is provided. An attribute associated with the logical object for enabling the recovery is set and when the storage space is replicated the attribute is stored as metadata for the replicated copy of the storage space. Based on the attribute, a clone of the logical object is presented as a writable option to write to the first replicated copy. After the write operation where information is written to the clone, a second replicated copy with the clone information is created. The clone is deleted after the second copy is generated.
US08954788B2
In one embodiment, a Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) Input/Output (I/O) device operable to perform Single Root I/O Virtualization (SR-IOV) is provided. The device comprises hardware registers implementing a PCIe configuration space for the device, and firmware implementing one or more SR-IOV virtual functions that each provide a virtual machine access to a subset of PCIe configuration space hardware registers for the device. The device further includes a hardware recovery register directly accessible by each of the virtual machines, and a control unit. The control unit is operable to detect a firmware fault at the I/O device and to update the hardware recovery register with information describing the firmware fault.
US08954784B2
Embodiments include a power-efficient failover method. The method includes operating a primary server at a normal operating state in which program code is executed, and dynamically generating a backup of the results of the executed program code while in the normal operating state. The method further includes operating a redundant server at a reduced power state in which less power is consumed than in the normal operating state of the primary server. The workload of the primary server may be assumed according to the backup in response to a failure of the primary server. The power state of the redundant server is managed, including maintaining the redundant server in the reduced power state prior to detecting a failure of the primary server and increasing the power state of the redundant server and assuming the workload of the primary server in response to the failure of the primary server.
US08954781B2
The technology disclosed relates to real-time collection and flexible reporting of test data. In particular, it is useful when collecting packet counts during tests of network devices that simulate thousands or even millions of data sessions conducted through a device under test (“DUT”).
US08954779B2
A timer module having a status register is connectable to an external arithmetic unit and generates at least one activity signal for an internal signal of the timer module and/or an internal unit of the timer module and/or a process within the internal unit, and enters an activity status into a status register in the event of a determined activity, and allows the activity status to be polled and reset by the external arithmetic unit at times determined by the external arithmetic unit. Furthermore, the activity status entered into the status register remains until it is reset by the external arithmetic unit.
US08954776B2
When there is a memory module mounted in a memory slot, a memory power circuit provides a voltage to the memory slot. First and second power pins of the memory slot are connected. A first electronic switch is turned on. A second electronic switch is turned off. A programmable logic controller (PLC) outputs a first control signal to the memory power circuit to output the voltage to the memory slot. When there is no memory module mounted in the memory slot and the motherboard is powered on, the memory power circuit provides a voltage to the memory slot. The first and second power pins of the memory slot are disconnected. The first electronic switch is turned off. The second electronic switch is turned on. The PLC outputs a second control signal to control the memory power circuit not to output the voltage to the memory slot.
US08954773B2
An electronic device comprises a voltage regulator supplying a current to a load such as a micro-controller unit. The load controls the current provided to the load from the voltage regulator. Preferably, the load controls the level of current supplied to the load upon start-up, thereby avoiding power surges being drawn by the load.
US08954770B2
In one embodiment, the present invention includes a method for determining, in a controller of a multi-domain processor, whether a temperature of a second domain of the multi-domain processor is greater than a sum of a throttle threshold and a cross-domain margin, and if so, reducing a frequency of a first domain of the multi-domain processor by a selected amount. In this way, a temperature of the second domain can be allowed to reduce, given a thermal coupling of the domains. Other embodiments are described and claimed.
US08954769B2
An image processing apparatus capable of shifting to a power saving mode. The image processing apparatus includes a storing unit configured to store a document in a storage device, a notification unit configured to periodically notify an apparatus of a predetermined destination of information about a document that has been newly stored by the storing unit into the storage device, and a control unit configured to restrict shifting to a power saving mode in which the notification unit cannot make the notification after storage of a document by the storing unit has been completed and until the notification unit notifies at least information about the document.
US08954767B2
Consistent with an example embodiment, there is a power regulator arrangement with variable current capacity providing power from a power supply to a load having variable demand. As a load, a high-performance microprocessor has several modes of operation. At the highest speed setting, it demands a lot of current. At slower clock speeds and during state retention, the processor has a very low current consumption. Using a single regulator, the current efficiency may be very low during long standby periods. To increase the efficiency even at lower load currents, a scheme is based on parallel operation of multiple regulators having different load ranges, for example, a “low, “medium,” and “high” range regulators. Having knowledge of the load current profile, the regulators can be adjusted such that the peak of the efficiency curve matches the load profile of the regulator. The efficiency of the power regulator arrangement is enhanced throughout the range of power demanded by the load.
US08954766B2
Based on bounds of a period of reduced operation for a base device, a base device generates a power management message for transmission to a peripheral device. In the power management message, the base device inserts bounds of a period of reduced operation for the peripheral device. As a result, the periods of reduced operation conserve battery power in both devices and the two devices may reestablish a communications channel upon reaching the end of the period of reduced operation and resuming normal operations.
US08954765B2
A method allocates energy entitlement to a logical partition (LPAR) executing on a data processing system. An energy entitlement allocation (EEA) utility enables an administrator to specify a minimum and/or maximum energy entitlement and an LPAR priority. When the relevant LPARs utilize the respective minimum energy entitlement based on a respective energy consumption, the EEA utility determines whether the LPAR(s) has satisfied a respective maximum energy entitlement. When the LPAR has not satisfied its maximum energy entitlement, the EEA utility allocates unused energy entitlement from the data processing system to the LPAR, according to an allocation policy. Additionally, the EEA utility dynamically adjusts a priority level for the LPAR to efficiently control resource allocation, according to the LPAR's energy consumption relative to its energy entitlement. In addition, the EEA utility is able to transfer unused energy entitlement to other data processing systems requiring further allocation of energy entitlement.
US08954761B2
An information processing device is provided. The information processing device which operates upon receipt of power supply from a power unit connected to an alternative current power source or from a battery includes an obtaining unit which obtains load information of parts included in the information processing device itself, a deciding unit which decides a voltage value to be supplied by the power unit which supplies electric power to the information processing device, based on the load information obtained by the obtaining unit, and an output unit which outputs a signal relative to the voltage value decided by the deciding unit to the power unit.
US08954748B2
Methods and systems to allow for selective access to supplemental content that is associated with more generally distributed original content. In an embodiment, supplemental content may be encrypted, then integrated with original content using a steganographic technique. The resulting aggregated content may then be made available to users. Users may then extract the encrypted supplemental content from the original content. Those users having the proper privilege level may be given a cryptographic key to allow decryption of the supplemental content. Those without the necessary privilege will not be given this decryption key, and will therefore be unable to access the supplemental content.
US08954744B2
A technique in a mobile device which is configured to communicate in a wireless network with use of a communication service provided by a service provider is described. The mobile device is configured to access via the wireless network a server for execution of an e-commerce transaction. The server is configured to administer a proof-of-work test in order to allow completion of the e-commerce transaction. The mobile device receives via the wireless network a token from a token server. The token is digitally signed by the service provider with a digital signature thereof. The mobile device sends via the wireless network a message to the server, and this message includes the token. When token validation of the message at the server is successful, the mobile device completes the e-commerce transaction with the server without performing the proof-of-work test, which is bypassed for the mobile device.
US08954740B1
A server receives identifying information of a user of a client device and data encrypted with a public key of a group, where the encrypted data includes an encrypted session key for secure content. The server determines whether the user is a member of the group using the identifying information of the user. If the user is a member of the group, the server decrypts the encrypted session key using a private key of the group, and causes the client device to obtain a session key to access the secure content.
US08954720B2
An IC chip, an information processing apparatus, a software module control method, an information processing system, an information processing method, and a program for allowing a plurality of software modules to ensure their respective security when operating are provided. An information processing system is provided to include a reader/writer and a portable communication terminal accessed by the reader/writer through near-field communication. In the portable communication terminal, a memory access management module stores a map regarding a plurality of software modules J and F for handling information exchanged in accordance with different noncontact communication principles while managing the software modules J and F based on the map. Another software module A performs mapping of the map for permitting or inhibiting the operations of the plurality of software modules.
US08954716B2
A master policy server manages security polices for client computers through a network of local policy servers. Each local policy server is responsible for the security policies on a group of clients and maintains a data store containing the security policies and security infornation pertaining to the clients. Periodically, the master policy server and the local policy server synchronize, at which time the master policy server replicates updated policies to the local policy servers and the local policy servers upload client security statistics to the master policy server for consolidation into a global status.
US08954714B2
An apparatus includes a processor. The processor includes two memories. The first memory stores one set of instructions. The second memory stores another set of instructions that are longer than the set of instructions in the first memory. An instruction in the set of instructions in the first memory is used as a pointer to a corresponding instruction in the set of instructions in the second memory.
US08954713B2
Techniques are described for transmitting predicted output data on a processing element in a stream computing application instead of processing currently received input data. The stream computing application monitors the output of a processing element and determines whether its output is predictable, for example, if the previously transmitted output values are within a predefined range or if one or more input values correlate with the same one or more output values. The application may then generate a predicted output value to transmit from the processing element instead of transmitting a processed output value based on current input values. The predicted output value may be, for example, an average of the previously transmitted output values or a previously transmitted output value that was transmitted in response to a previously received input value that is similar to a currently received input value.
US08954711B2
A data processing apparatus is provided comprising processing circuitry and an instruction decoder responsive to program instructions to control processing circuitry to perform the data processing. The instruction decoder is responsive to an address calculating instruction to perform an address calculating operation for calculating a partial address result from a non-fixed reference address and a partial offset value such that a full address specifying a memory location of an information entity is calculable from said partial address result using at least one supplementary program instruction. The partial offset value has a bit-width greater than or equal to said instruction size and is encoded within at least one partial offset field of said address calculating instruction. A corresponding data processing method, virtual machine and computer program product are also provided.
US08954709B2
A memory management apparatus has an ASID conversion table, an actual ASID use table, and a TLB flush control section. The ASID conversion table and the actual ASID use table manage virtual ASID, actual ASID and an overlap flag so that they are related for each VM. The TLB flush control section reads actual ASIDs allocated to VM as a switching target at the time of switching VM as a switching source into the VM as the switching target, determines whether the read actual ASID is allocated to the plurality of VMs in an overlapped manner with reference to the overlap flag, and sets the actual ASID in the read actual ASIDs determined being allocated in the overlapped manner as a target for the TLB flush.
US08954699B1
A technique of identifying IO hot spots is performed in a data storage apparatus (e.g., a file server). The technique involves updating, in response to host IO operations which lock ranges of extents prior to accessing the ranges of extents, contents of a lock history database based on the ranges of extents which were locked by the host IO operations. The technique further involves receiving a lock history request. The technique further involves providing, in response to the lock history request, the contents of the lock history database to identify, as the IO hot spots, extents which were locked by the host IO operations.
US08954691B2
A network device that includes a first memory to store packets in segments; a second memory to store pointers associated with the first memory; a third memory to store summary bits and allocation bits, where the allocation bits correspond to the segments. The network device also includes a processor to receive a request for memory resources; determine whether a pointer is stored in the second memory, where the pointer corresponds to a segment that is available to store a packet; and send the pointer when the pointer is stored in the second memory. The processor is further to perform a search to identify other pointers when the pointer is not stored in the second memory, where performing the search includes identifying a set of allocation bits, based on an unallocated summary bit, that corresponds to the other pointers; identify another pointer, of the other pointers, based on an unallocated allocation bit of the set of allocation bits; and send the other pointer in response to the request.
US08954689B2
A first cumulative data transfer over a first time window from an intermediary module to a data storage media is determined. The intermediary module is coupled between a host interface and the data storage media. An activity rate from the intermediary module to the data storage media is limited for one or more subsequent time windows if the first cumulative activity rate exceeds a threshold value that impacts life of the data storage media. The limitation of the activity rate is removed after the one or more subsequent time windows expire.
US08954687B2
A computer system includes a controller coupled to a plurality of memory modules each of which includes a memory hub and a plurality of memory devices. The memory hub includes a row cache memory that stores data as they are read from the memory devices. When the memory module is not being accessed by the controller, a sequencer in the memory module generates requests to read data from a row of memory cells. The data read responsive to the generated read requests are also stored in the row cache memory. As a result, read data in the row being accessed may be stored in the row cache memory even though the data was not previously read from the memory device responsive to a memory request from the controller.
US08954683B2
A translation table has entries that each include a share bit and a delta bit, with pointers that point to a memory block that includes reuse bits. When two translation table entries reference identical fragments in a memory block, one of the translation table entries is changed to refer to the same memory block referenced in the other translation table entry, which frees up a memory block. The share bit is set to indicate a translation table entry is sharing its memory block with another translation table entry. In addition, a translation table entry may include a private delta in the form of a pointer that references a memory fragment in the memory block that is not shared with other translation table entries. When a translation table has a private delta, its delta bit is set.
US08954680B2
A method, apparatus and product for data prefetching. The method comprising: prefetching data associated with a load instruction of a computer program, wherein the prefetching is performed in anticipation to performing the load instruction, whereby the data is retained in the cache; detecting whether the prefetched data of the prefetching is invalidated after the prefetching commenced and prior to performing the load instruction; and adaptively determining whether to modify the prefetching data operation associated with the load instruction in response to the detection.
US08954673B1
In one aspect, a method includes sending a conditional read request from a host to a storage array requesting data in a data block stored at the storage array. The conditional read request includes a first hash of data in the data block at the host. The method also includes determining a second hash of the data in the data block stored at the storage array, comparing the first hash and the second hash, sending a reply from the storage array to the host with the data in the data block stored at the storage array if the first hash and the second hash differ and sending a reply from the storage array to the host without the data in the data block stored at the storage array if the first hash and the second hash are the same.
US08954665B2
Systems and methods for tracking changes and performing backups to a storage device are provided. For virtual disks of a virtual machine, changes are tracked from outside the virtual machine in the kernel of a virtualization layer. The changes can be tracked in a lightweight fashion with a bitmap, with a finer granularity stored and tracked at intermittent intervals in persistent storage. Multiple backup applications can be allowed to accurately and efficiently backup a storage device. Each backup application can determine which block of the storage device has been updated since the last backup of a respective application. This change log is efficiently stored as a counter value for each block, where the counter is incremented when a backup is performed. The change log can be maintained with little impact on I/O by using a coarse bitmap to update the finer grained change log.
US08954664B1
A disk drive comprising a rotatable disk, a head actuated over the disk, and a controller is disclosed. The controller is configured to write data on the disk using the head, to store logical-to-physical mapping information for data already written on the disk in a circular buffer as the data is written on the disk, and to write a plurality of metadata files on the disk using the head, wherein the plurality of metadata files are interspersed with the data on the disk and each of the metadata files includes contents of the circular buffer at a time the metadata file is written on the disk.
US08954662B2
A Solid State Drive (SSD) controller is disclosed. When a data read command is transmitted by a host, the SSD controller may select a representative pointer from at least one first pointer by checking a point in time when data writing is completed in a buffer by at least one memory, read the data from the buffer by referring to a second pointer, and transmit the read data to the host, based on the representative pointer.
US08954651B2
A method may comprise receiving a page of data to be stored on a storage resource. The method may also comprise determining, for each particular inversion mode of a plurality of inversion modes, the number of bits of the page of data to be inverted to store a representation of the page of data in accordance with the particular inversion mode. The method may additionally comprise determining a selected inversion mode from the plurality of inversion modes for the page of data, the selected inversion mode comprising the inversion mode for which the least number of physical bit transitions are required to store the representation of the page of data in accordance with the selected inversion mode. The method may further comprise storing the representation of the page of data in a data memory in accordance with the inversion mode.
US08954649B2
A solution for managing a storage device based on a flash memory is proposed. A corresponding method starts with the step for mapping a logical memory space of the storage device (including a plurality of logical blocks) on a physical memory space of the flash memory (including a plurality of physical blocks, which are adapted to be erased individually). The physical blocks include a set of first physical blocks (corresponding to the logical blocks) and a set of second—or spare—physical blocks (for replacing each bad physical block that is unusable). The method continues by detecting each bad physical block. Each bad physical block is then discarded, so to prevent using the bad physical block for mapping the logical memory space.
US08954647B2
Systems and methods are provided for storing data to or reading data from a non-volatile memory (“NVM”), such as flash memory, using a metadata redundancy scheme. In some embodiments, an electronic device, which includes an NVM, may also include a memory interface for controlling access to the NVM. The memory interface may receive requests to write user data to the NVM. The user data from each request may be associated with metadata, such as a logical address, a directional flag, or other data. In response to a write request, the NVM interface may store the user data and its associated metadata in a first memory location (e.g., page), and may store a redundant copy of the metadata in a second memory location. The directional flag indicates the geometric relationship between the first memory location and the second memory location. Thus, if the first memory location becomes inaccessible, the memory interface can still recover the metadata from the backup copy stored in the second memory location.
US08954637B1
A communications cable including a first communications interface configured to be connected to a storage device, a second communications interface configured to receive data and power, a wireless access module configured to be powered by the power received by the second communications interface and to enable wireless access of the storage device, and a cable unit including one or more cables and configured to connect the wireless access module to the first communications interface and the second communications interface, and the first communications interface to the second communications interface.
US08954635B2
A device includes a link interface circuit, a first plurality of allocated buffers, and a second plurality of non-allocated buffers. The link interface circuit is operable to communicate over a communications link using a plurality of virtual channels. A different subset of the plurality of allocated buffers is allocated to each of the virtual channels. The non-allocated buffers are not allocated to a particular virtual channel. The link interface circuit is operable to receive a first transaction over the communications link and assign the first transaction to one of the allocated buffers or one of the non-allocated buffers.
US08954634B2
Operating a demultiplexer on an I2C bus, the demultiplexer including a set of input signal lines from an I2C master and a plurality of sets of output signal lines, the demultiplexer configured to couple the inputs among the output in dependence upon a demultiplexer select signal line that couples the demultiplexer to a rise time detection circuit, where the rise time detection circuit is also coupled to the input signal lines and the rise time detection circuit: monitors a voltage of at least one of the input signal lines, including: receiving, from the I2C master, a signal on one of the lines; and detecting rise time of the signal; and if the rise time of the signal is less than a predefined threshold, configuring the demultiplexer to vary the coupling of the input signal lines from a first set of outputs to a second set.
US08954631B2
A method for continuous data transfer when a USB mass storage device is disconnected and reconnected is provided. The method may include monitoring state information from one or more mass storage devices, using a software driver to detect a change in state of the mass storage device on the computer. Active I/O transfers using the USB mass storage device are paused when the software driver detects that the USB mass storage device is detached from the computer. A configurable timer is started. The software drive may detect the attaching of a USB device. If, prior to the expiration of the timer, the software driver verifies that the USB mass storage device is the same that was previously attached to the computer, active I/O transfers are continued.
US08954613B2
A communication interface for providing an interface between a data link and a data processor, the data processor being capable of supporting an operating system and a user application, the communication interface being arranged to: support a first queue of data received over the link and addressed to a logical data port associated with a user application; support a second queue of data received over the link and identified as being directed to the operating system; and analyze data received over the link and identified as being directed to the operating system or the data port to determine whether that data meets one or more predefined criteria, and if it does meet the criteria transmit an interrupt to the operating system.
US08954611B2
At least one embodiment of this disclosure includes a method of sharing application states across different user profiles. The method can include: receiving a request from a first computing device associated with a first user profile to load an application state of a target application, wherein the application state is owned by a second user profile; verifying permission for the first user profile to load the application state owned by the second user profile; configuring a sharing instance of the application state of the target application by accessing application data of the application state associated with the second user profile in a storage service; and sending the sharing instance to be loaded onto the first computing device.
US08954609B1
In one example, network device includes a control unit having one or more hardware-based microprocessors and an interface. The interface can receive a first time synchronization message from a master device that comprises a first TTL value. The first TTL value can be indicative of a number of hops traversed by the first time synchronization message. The interface can subsequently receive a second time synchronization message from the master device that comprises a second TTL value that is is indicative of a number of hops traversed by the second time synchronization message. The network device can also include a timing module that determines a time adjustment based at least in part on the determination that the first and second TTL values are different, and applies the time adjustment to update the time of the network device.
US08954605B1
A method of providing controlled communications receives communication data, at least one communication parameter and recipient information related to a transmission of the communication data to a recipient over the network. A link for accessing a viewer on a recipient's device is generated. The viewer is configured to receive packets of the communication data transmitted to the recipient device over the network, and display the packets of the communication data within the viewer. At least one control protocol relating to the transmission is activated. Once the viewer has been accessed by the recipient via the link, the packets of the communication data are transmitted to the viewer for display within the viewer while the transmission complies with the at least one communication parameter and while the at least one control protocol is adhered to. Systems can be constructed to implement the methods described herein.
US08954594B2
There is provided a communication device, comprising, a communication unit which mediates a communication connection with another communication device, a memory unit which stores connection history information which indicates history of a connection party connected via the communication unit and connection restriction information to limit the number of connection party changes, and a determination unit which determines connection acceptability with a new connection party based on the connection history information and the connection restriction information stored in the memory unit.
US08954586B2
Disclosed are approaches for pre-provisioning cloud computing resources such as virtual machines (VMs) in order to achieve faster and more consistent provisioning times. Embodiments describe approaches to generate a pre-provisioned pool of virtual machines that are utilized when one or more consumers start to initiate a large volume of requests. In typical embodiments, a selection of an operating system to be associated with a VM is received in a computer data structure. A provisioning of the VM will then be initiated based on the selection of the operating system. Thereafter, at least one selection of at least one software program to be associated with the VM will be received in the computer data structure. The provisioning of the VM can then be completed based on the at least one selection of the at least one software program in response to a provisioning request received in the computer data structure.
US08954579B2
Embodiments are directed to verifying the accessibility and functionality of an online service and to scheduling the automatic execution of an online service. In one scenario, a computer system receives online service workflows and corresponding expected outcomes for each workflow. Each online service workflow is associated with an online service, and each online service workflow includes workflow steps that cause the online service to perform specified operations that produce observable outcomes within a specified amount of time specified by the online service provider. The computer system executes at least one of the received online service workflows and abandons execution of the online service workflow if execution is not completed within the specified amount of time. The computer system also compares the outcomes of the workflow execution to the expected outcomes corresponding to the executed online service workflow and generates a report that includes the results of the comparison.
US08954578B2
A system, method and computer program product are provided for heuristically identifying protocols during network analysis utilizing a network analyzer. First provided is a sequencing and reassembly (SAR) engine module for sequencing and/or re-assembling network communications. Coupled to the engine module is a plurality of protocol interpreter modules for interpreting protocols associated with the network communications. At least one of the protocol interpreter modules is adapted for heuristically identifying protocols associated with the network communications.
US08954575B2
Embodiments perform centralized input/output (I/O) path selection for hosts accessing storage devices in distributed resource sharing environments. The path selection accommodates loads along the paths through the fabric and at the storage devices. Topology changes may also be identified and automatically initiated. Some embodiments contemplate the hosts executing a plurality of virtual machines (VMs) accessing logical unit numbers (LUNs) in a storage area network (SAN).
US08954573B2
A first Internet protocol version 6 (IPv6) address of a particular computing device within a network is identified using a first passive discovery sensor performing a first discovery task. A second discovery task is caused to be performed using the first IPv6 address and an attribute of the particular computing device is identified from results of the second discovery task. The first IPv6 address and attribute of the particular device is added to a repository maintaining a record of detected IPv6 addresses within the network. In some instances, a first passive discovery sensor can be one of an event-based discovery sensor, a latent-type discovery sensor, and an indirect-type discovery sensor.
US08954571B2
A communication network and software for its implementation that controls a mobile device based on historical user activity is provided. The mobile device communicates with a server and includes a function that is dependent on the user activity. The server senses the user activity over time and produces a histogram of that activity. The rate at which the server attempts to sense the user activity depends on the histogram. An application might change the function depending on the result of detecting the user activity and the rate at which it does so.
US08954570B2
One embodiment includes a method for estimating web traffic to a website. The method comprises obtaining a first set of reporting information from a secured external source that directs traffic to the website, the first set of reporting information having a corresponding portion of reporting information which is not provided from the secured external source, obtaining a second set of reporting information from a unsecured external source that directs traffic to the website, the second set of reporting information being different than the first set of reporting information, and generating an estimation of the corresponding portion of reporting information which is not provided from the secured external source by correlating the second set of reporting information with the first set of reporting information.
US08954568B2
A method and system for building an elastic cloud web server farm. The method includes registering a web application on a serving cloud and copying the web application to a distributed store. A load of the web application is specified, and a plurality of nodes is added for the web application based on the load. A web server corresponding to a node of the plurality of nodes is then initialized. A web request is received from a user and a web server is selected from a list of available web servers to process the web request. The web request is further transmitted to the web server. A web response, based on the web request, is transmitted back to the user. The system includes a central registry, a distributed store, a process coordinator, one or more web servers, and a router.
US08954562B2
In some embodiments, the invention involves calculating entropy-based stability values to be used in a framework to build a new class of network control (policy) and (state) management services. The framework may be used to build a number of self-management services to support decentralized (mesh) networks. Other embodiments are described and claimed.
US08954559B2
Systems and methods provide unified playing of announcements across different network interfaces. A system to extend an IMS SCIM to enable application servers using MSCML to play announcements to execute on WIN (CDMA) networks include an application server, including IMS applications. The system includes a SCIM to manage communication between call parties and the applications. In a CDMA network, which an open dialogue the SCIM is configured to respond to the IMS applications that then can play the announcement, receive a second message which indicates the announcement to play from the IMS applications, buffer the announcement indicated, and respond with a message to the IMS applications as if the announcements have been played.
US08954558B2
A method and a Packet data network GateWay (PGW) for releasing an Internet Protocol (IP) address in a mobile network are provided. The method includes allocating an Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) address and an Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) address to a User Equipment (UE) to activate a Packet Data Network (PDN) connection between the UE and the PGW; and if the UE releases the IPv4 address, transmitting to a Serving GateWay (SGW) a Binding Revocation message including an indication to release only the IPv4 address from the PDN connection to SGW.
US08954555B2
A browser request is received at a computing device. A determination is made as to whether to replace the browser request with a push notification based upon characteristics of the browser request. The browser request is replaced with the push notification in response to determining, based upon the characteristics of the browser request, to replace the browser request with the push notification.
US08954554B2
Example systems and methods provide remote context transfer and session termination. A computer-implemented method for remote context transfer between user sessions with a clinical information system includes accepting a user log on request for a user session at a first clinical information system; identifying one or more open sessions associated with the user; saving a context associated with one of the one or more open sessions; terminating the one or more open sessions identified as associated with the user; and transferring the saved context to the user session at the first clinical information system for use by the user in the user session.
US08954539B2
Providing targeted content to a surfer by determining which content object of a group of content objects, will be best suited for presentation in association with a link on a requested web page. Content objects may include the text, topic, font, color or other attribute of an external or internal advertisement, as well as the specific design of the object, an image, the design of the page in which the object is presented, etc. Selection of a content object can be based on predictive information that is associated with the request (i.e. day and time of receipt, IP address of request, etc.) or historical information about the surfer.
US08954537B2
A method for providing a provider-selected message in response to a user request for user-selected information is disclosed. The method includes receiving a request from a client program for user-selected information. If a provider-selected message has not been previously transmitted to the client program, the method further includes transmitting provider-selected information to the client program. If a provider-selected message has been previously transmitted to the client program, the method further includes transmitting the user-selected information. In one embodiment, the method also includes receiving a second request from the client program for the user-selected information after the provider-selected information is displayed for a limited time.
US08954536B2
Examples to determine media impressions using distributed demographic information are disclosed. Some disclosed example methods involve sending a request to an impression monitor system in response to detecting a login event at a client device. The login event is associated with an Internet-based service of a first Internet domain different from a second internet domain of the impression monitor system. Such disclosed example methods also involve sending a login reporting message to a database proprietor that provides the Internet-based service. The login reporting message including first and second cookie identifiers. The first cookie identifier is associated with the first Internet domain of the Internet-based service, and the second cookie identifier is associated with the second Internet domain of the impression monitor system.
US08954535B2
A network device may receive information regarding a service set identifying service to apply to a data flow received via a particular interface of the network device; receive the data flow via the particular interface; identify a service to provide to the data flow based on the information regarding the service set; identify a processing device to process the data flow; and provide the data flow to the processing device. The processing device may be different than the network device and may process the data flow, on behalf of the network device, to form a processed data flow. The processed data flow may include the data flow with the service applied to the data flow. The network device may further receive the processed data flow from the processing device and transmit the processed data flow toward a destination device.
US08954528B2
A function of browsing web content using a DLNA-compliant player device is provided. A DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) content conversion device converts a structure of navigation tags represented by HTML (Hyper TextMarkup Language) data into a folder structure on a DLNA server having the same hierarchical structure as the hierarchical structure of the navigation tags.
US08954524B1
A method and system for improving access to network content are described. Aspects of the disclosure minimize the delay between a navigation event and a network response by prerendering the next navigation event. For example, the method and system may predict a likely next uniform resource locator during web browsing to preemptively request content from the network before the user selects the corresponding link on a web page. The prediction operation may use a current location of a computing device to identify a set of browsing habits associated with that location. The browsing habits may be used to identify a most likely navigation event for prerendering. The methods and systems describe a variety of manners for prerendering content and managing and configuring prerendering operations.
US08954522B1
An upper level protocol processing mechanism is employed with high performance offload processors to increase system performance while amortizing the cost of employing such processors. Such an upper level protocol processing mechanism can be employed to offload, for example, storage access protocols. An example system might have one or more clients and one or more servers each coupled to its respective storage. One or more front end processors is coupled between the clients and the servers. The clients access the storage coupled to the servers via a storage access protocol. In accordance with the invention, the storage access protocol is divided into a front end protocol portion and a back end protocol portion. The front end protocol portion is executed on the front end processors, while the back end protocol portion is executed on the servers. The back end protocol portion is transparent to the clients.
US08954519B2
Described spam detection techniques including string identification, pre-filtering, and character histogram and timestamp comparison steps facilitate accurate, computationally-efficient detection of rapidly-changing spam arriving in short-lasting waves. In some embodiments, a computer system extracts a target character string from an electronic communication such as a blog comment, transmits it to an anti-spam server, and receives an indicator of whether the respective electronic communication is spam or non-spam from the anti-spam server. The anti-spam server determines whether the electronic communication is spam or non-spam according to certain features of the character histogram of the target string. Some embodiments also perform an unsupervised clustering of incoming target strings into clusters, wherein all members of a cluster have similar character histograms.
US08954517B2
A method and apparatus for delegating a message. An audio message from a prioritized list of audio messages is received by a computing device. The audio message identifies a first sender designated priority and a first recipient prioritization attribute. A delegate for responding to the audio message is determined. A delegation action identifier identifying a delegation action of a plurality of delegation actions is determined. A first delegation action directs a delegate to generate a response and send the response to the sender without notifying a delegator. A second delegation action directs the delegate to generate the response and send the response to both the sender and the delegator. A third delegation action directs the delegate to generate the response and send the response to the delegator. A delegate identifier identifying the delegate and the delegation action identifier are communicated to the message server for delegation of the audio message to the delegate in accordance with the delegation action.
US08954510B2
A method of parsing an email includes receiving an email and determining whether the email includes a response history. Based on the response history, the email is parsed. A computer usable medium including computer readable code and a system including means for accomplishing similar actions is also disclosed.
US08954503B2
On embodiment accesses a set of information comprising one or more elements of information relating to a subject matter, wherein the one or more elements of information have been shared among one or more users of a social-networking system; for each element of information, determines a rate of sharing of the element of information among the one or more users and identifies one or more first users who cause the rate of sharing of the element of information to increase; and identifies one or more influencers associated with the subject matter from the one or more first users identified for each element of information.
US08954501B2
Devices and methods for determining a group and for determining information related to group entries
Described are methods and devices for identifying a group that include various methods to determine a group. Also described are devices and methods for attempting communication with a missing member of the group include different manners in which to determine information related to an entry of a group. The described devices and methods may be particularly beneficial at the particular time the certain group members plan to be or are in communication with one another. In this way, in the event that two or more entries of a group planned to be in communication or are in communication in-real time, in accordance with the disclosed devices and methods, the parties may be able to bring one or more other entries of the group into the communication as needed or desired.
US08954498B2
A system for enhancing group communication includes a computer server for receiving a first digital from a remote client. The server analyzes the first image to determine one or more first image attributes and communicates the image to one or more recipients. Communication information including image attributes, email addresses, and names of the recipients is stored. When a second image is received the server analyzes it to determine its attributes and forms second image communication information relevant to the second image. The second communication information includes data from the first image communication information, its image attributes, and one or more separate second image recipients.
US08954495B2
The disclosure describes a proxy server application that supports the dynamic modification of proxy rules implemented by a proxy server. The proxy rules implemented by the proxy server specify network behaviors to be performed at various points during the handling of requests from client applications. A proxy server implements the proxy rules by processing one or more user-generated network traffic filters for managing network traffic. In an embodiment, users generate network traffic filters by creating network traffic filter source code that specify processing steps to be performed by a proxy server relative to network messages the proxy server receives. In an embodiment, user-generated network traffic filters may be added, removed, reordered, or otherwise modified in a proxy server application at runtime in order to respond to current network conditions or to achieve other desired proxy configurations.
US08954476B2
A system and method for mediating a transaction of a digital document by converting a transaction into an internal representation according to predefined rules and according to processing definitions associated with the source of the transaction, validating and possibly altering the transaction in its internal representation according to predefined rules and according to processing definitions associated with the destination of the transaction, converting said internal representation into an external representation according to predefined rules and according to rules specific to a destination of said transaction and communicating the external representation to a destination.
US08954462B2
A system and method for suggesting search terms is described. The method includes receiving a search term from a client at a first time and generating one or more suggested search terms to the client based on the analysis of elapsed time data between the first time and a prior time of receiving a prior search terms. The method further includes sending the suggested search terms to the client.
US08954451B2
For each web page visited, a path is determined through a hierarchy of categories. The hierarchy of categories has levels from a most abstract level to a most concrete level. For each microblog entry of a microblog, a path is determined through the hierarchy of categories. Each microblog entry for which the path is similar to the path for at least one web page is determined as a selected microblog entry.
US08954449B2
A method for identifying an influencer of a brand is disclosed. The method embodiment includes scanning social media objects published by at least one social networking entity to identify a first social media object posted by a first user and relating to a brand associated with a product, an enterprise, a service, a person, a concept, and/or a trackable object. The social media objects include messages, video and audio clips, and/or image files posted by a plurality of users. The method also includes calculating a brand influence score for the first user based on a plurality of influence factors. The brand influence score for the first user is compared to a threshold influence score, and the first user is identified as a brand influencer when the first user's brand influence score is greater than the threshold influence score.
US08954445B2
A method of representing and managing hierarchical relationship configuration in a computing facility is described. The method includes providing and storing a first index of hardware identifier assigned to each object in the computing facility; providing and storing a second index of ancestry identifiers of each object in the computing facility, the ancestry identifier of an object being the hardware identifier of an ancestor object at 1 to n hierarchy levels above the object; providing and storing a type information element for each ancestor object indicative of a type of ancestor object; and identifying an ancestor object of a particular object in the computing facility by accessing the first index of hardware identifier of the particular object; and identifying an ancestor object thereof of a particular typed by accessing the ancestry identifiers and the type information element of the particular object.
US08954434B2
The present technology is related to identifying, from within a corpus of documents, a subject (e.g., person, location, date, etc.) that is relevant to a topic and that is usable to enhance a topic-describing document. Documents within the corpus of documents share a link structure, such that some documents include hyperlinks that enable navigation to the topic-describing document, and the topic-describing document includes hyperlinks that enable navigation to other documents. Text of documents within the corpus is parsed to identify the subject, and a context of the subject suggests a degree of relevance of the subject to the topic. An enhancement type of the subject is determined, and a version of the topic-describing document is enhanced to include a presentation of the subject.
US08954433B2
A processor-implemented method, system, and/or computer program product generate a recommendation to add a member to a receptivity cohort. A receptivity cohort is made up of members who share a conduct attribute, which is a facial expression, body language, and/or social interaction of a person. The conduct attribute has been predetermined to be an indicator of a level of receptiveness to a proposed future change in a set of circumstances. Biometric sensor data, which describe the facial expression, body language and/or social interaction for a candidate member, are retrieved from a set of biometric sensors. The retrieved biometric sensor data for the candidate member is compared to the conduct attribute of members of the receptivity cohort. In response to the biometric sensor data for the candidate member matching the conduct attribute of members of the receptivity cohort, a recommendation is generated to add the candidate member to the receptivity cohort.
US08954430B1
Various systems, methods, and programs embodied in computer-readable mediums are provided for saving search results. A representative example includes receiving an indication of a selected first search result. The selected first search result included in a first plurality of search results matching a first search criteria. This example also includes aggregating the selected first search result and a second plurality of search results matching a second search criteria, and providing the aggregated search results.
US08954423B2
A request can be received and a request reading level representation for the request can be inferred. In response to the request, the request reading level representation can be compared with one or more reading difficulty level representations for one or more response items. Also in response to the request, one or more indications of results of comparing the request reading level representation with one or more reading difficulty level representations for the one or more response items can be returned. The indication(s) may include a ranking of the response items. The ranking can be based at least in part on a request reading level representation for the query and reading difficulty level representations for the response items. The response item(s) may also be returned.
US08954418B2
The present invention includes a database with a semantic layer for performing standard SQL and complex operations custom to one or more application. In one embodiment the present invention includes receiving a data request from an application in a database, the data request specifying standard SQL operations and custom application operations to be performed for said application. The data request is processed in a semantic layer of the database. The semantic layer processes the standard SQL operations and the custom application operations and generates a logical execution plan comprising the standard SQL operations and the custom application operations. The logical execution plan is converted into a physical execution plan, which is executed by the database to generate a data result. The data result may be sent back to the application.
US08954407B2
Methods and Apparatus, including computer program products, for maintaining indexes in a database management system. The database management system includes a table having table entries and an index data structure having index data structure entries, the index data structure relating to the table. The index data structure is updated synchronously with an insertion of table entries. The index data structure is maintained unchanged when the table entries are deleted. It is verified by an index-scan on the index data structure that a valid criterion is fulfilled for index data structure entries, and those index data structure entries that pass the valid criterion from the index-scan are returned.
US08954403B2
Systems and methods for transforming a logical data object for storage in a storage device operable with at least one storage protocol, creating, reading, writing, optimization and restoring thereof. Transforming the logical data object comprises creating in the storage device a transformed logical data object comprising one or more allocated storage sections with a predefined size; transforming one or more sequentially obtained chunks of obtained data corresponding to the transforming logical data object; and sequentially storing the processed data chunks into said storage sections in accordance with a receive order of said chunks, wherein said storage sections serve as atomic elements of transformation/de-transformation operations during input/output transactions on the logical data object. The processing may comprise two or more data transformation techniques coordinated in time, concurrently executing autonomous sets of instructions, and provided in a manner preserving the sequence of processing and storing the processed data chunks.
US08954394B2
Technology is disclosed for using computing devices (“the devices”) of a user as an edge cache of a distributed backup system to stream video files. In the distributed backup system, the user can store different data files of the user at different devices of the user and/or at a server. For example, the user may store video files at one of the devices of the user (“a first device”) in addition to storing at the server. When the user requests to stream a particular video file to a particular device, the technology streams the video file to the particular device either from the server or from the first device. If the first device is in proximity to the particular device, the video file is streamed from the first device instead of from the server, thereby minimizing the latency involved in streaming the video file from the server.
US08954393B1
System and method for the opportunistic allocation of copies of data across data storage resources in file systems. Embodiments may opportunistically and transparently trade storage space in a file system for performance. In embodiments, when data is stored to the file system, copies of the data may be opportunistically stored to two or more data storage resources. The data may then be opportunistically accessed from a less active resource if the resource storing a primary copy of the data is busy. The opportunistically stored copies of data remain online in the file system. In hierarchical file systems or tiered storage hierarchies, embodiments may allow higher-level storage tiers to “borrow” performance from lower-level tiers by opportunistically allocating copies of data from a higher-level tier within a lower-level tier. Copies of data stored on a data storage resource may be deleted if storage space is needed on that data storage resource.
US08954383B1
A method is used in analyzing mapping objects of file systems. Each mapping object of a set of mapping objects of files of a file system is analyzed by iterating over the set of mapping objects. A file is associated with a first mapping object of the set of mapping objects and a snapshot copy of the file is associated with a second mapping object of the set of mapping objects. The second mapping object shares a subset of a set of storage objects associated with the first mapping object. Information for each storage object of the set of storage objects associated with each mapping object of the set of mapping objects is stored. Based on the stored information, each storage object of the set of storage objects associated with each mapping object of the set of mapping objects is processed.
US08954381B1
Techniques are described for determining data movements. Gradient sets are determined for storage tiers. Each gradient set is associated with one of the storage tiers and includes at least one gradient. Based on the gradient sets, a donor tier and a first set of one or more receiving tiers are selected from the plurality of storage tiers. A first data portion having data currently stored on at least one physical device of the donor tier is selected. In accordance with data movement criteria, a second data portion included in a receiving tier of the first set is selected. Selecting the second data portion includes modeling a first data movement including moving the first data portion from the donor tier to the receiving tier. The first data movement may be included in a recommended list and may be performed by a data storage optimizer.
US08954369B1
A method to build, manage and analyze a gap analysis model in software of safety instrumented system architecture for a safety instrumented systems in a facility. The safety instrumented system architecture has at least one instrumented protective function and the non-transitory computer instructions use a real world software model in support of process safety lifecycle management.
US08954363B2
A digital-to-analogue converter, with application to electronic circuits with neuromorphic architecture, comprises: transistors of identical nominal geometrical characteristics, but of dispersed current-voltage characteristics, wherein when a constant gate-source voltage is applied to the different transistors, a current varying as a function of the dispersion circulates in the transistor; a digital table receiving a digital word and having a selection output selecting, as a function of the word to be converted, a transistor or transistors supplying a current of desired value representing this word in analogue form. The look-up table is loaded as a function of real measured current-voltage characteristics of different transistors of the set, to establish a look-up between words and current values. The wide variability of characteristics of the transistors, notably their leakage current for a gate-source voltage below the switch-on threshold, allows finding combinations of leakage currents which are a good representation of words to be converted.
US08954353B2
A method for forming a dynamic verification value. The method includes altering a first data string to form a second data string, and forming a first dynamic verification value using at least a portion of the second data string. The first dynamic verification value is used to authenticate a phone in a first transaction. The second data string is used to form a third data string. A second dynamic verification value is formed using at least a portion of the third data string. The second dynamic verification value is used to authenticate the phone in a second transaction.
US08954352B1
A method and apparatus for storing financial data utilizing a communications network is described. In one embodiment, provisioning access is provided to a plurality of unrelated financial entities. The financial data received from the plurality of unrelated financial entities are stored in a secure data store, e.g., a secure network based mailbox.
US08954348B2
A system and method for distributing products where the product is shown, presented or advertised via a first communication method and a request to purchase that product is issued substantially simultaneously with the listening or viewing of the product. The request is then transmitted via a second communication method to a distributor who fills the order for such products.
US08954337B2
Disclosed is an interactive genome browser executing within a web browser application, configured to display patient genetic data and additional genetic data tracks which are aligned by base pair. Additional tracks may include public data, community data, private data, sequence gaps, and additional genetic tests or probes which are available. Tests or probes may be ordered by selecting them from a test or probe track. Data in a genetic information database may also be searched using the interactive genome browser. Analyzed patient data may be published and made available to a community of users, which may communicate with one another.
US08954334B2
A voice-activated pulser can trigger an oscilloscope or a meter, upon a simple voice command, thereby enabling hands-free signal measurements. The pulser can also be used to control the circuit under test, activating it or changing parameters, all under voice control. The pulser includes numerous switch-selectable output modes that allow users to generate complex, tightly-controlled diagnostic sequences, all activated upon a voice command and hands-free. The invention includes a fast, robust command-interpretation protocol that completely eliminates the expense and complexity of word recognition. Visual indicators display the device status and various operating modes, and also confirm each output pulse. The device receives voice commands directly through an internal microphone, or through a detachable headset, and confirms each command with an acoustical signal in the headset.
US08954331B1
Methods and computer readable medium for providing third party verification data files to entities authorized to access the data files using a third party verification system. In an exemplary embodiment, the method includes retrieving, via at least one of a computer or a telephone, a video file corresponding to an identifier, wherein the retrieved video file contains video footage of at least one response by an individual to at least one question.
US08954298B2
Methods and systems for balancing helicopter rotor blades are disclosed. In some examples, density data of a rotor blade may be acquired by scanning the rotor blade. In some examples, a three-dimensional model of a rotor blade may be merged with density data of the rotor blade. In some examples, simulations may be performed to predict flight data associated with a modeled rotor blade. In some examples, a database may be referenced to predict a desired weight balance of a rotor blade.
US08954297B2
Computational systems and methods are disclosed that learn about and assist with appropriate structure-based design choices. The systems and methods autonomously explore design states, and suggest to a user one or more optimize design states. Constraints are provided to limit exploration to valid design states. Systems and methods are disclosed that assist groups of users with coordinating their efforts in producing a cohesive design. Systems and methods are disclosed for learning from past optimizations in order to provide more rapid convergence on an optimized design, avoid local maxima and other hurdles to optimization, avoid undesired optimizations, and so on.
US08954296B2
A scale model pressure building for teaching pressure diagnostics and weatherization strategies for residential and commercial building structures. The model building is designed for ease of fabrication and ease of assembly. The design allows the instructor to simulate numerous construction errors, airflow problems, air sealing strategies, and testing procedures while in a classroom setting.
US08954295B1
In a computer-implemented method of determining an outer shell of a composite three-dimensional model, an indication of a plurality of initial faces of the composite three-dimensional model is received. A plurality of intersections between the plurality of initial faces is determined. A plurality of split faces is generated by splitting each of the plurality of initial faces that intersects another one or more of the plurality of initial faces into two or more split faces along one or more lines of intersection. It is determined whether each of the plurality of split faces and each of the plurality of initial faces that does not intersect another one or more of the plurality of initial faces corresponds to the outer shell or to an interior portion of the composite three-dimensional model.
US08954288B2
A mechanism for indicating ambient temperature of an enclosure from temperatures determined within the enclosure. The temperatures may be obtained from two or more sensors at each of two or more locations within the enclosure. The enclosure may include an apparatus inside such as electronics of which power consumption may be determined. Data including temperatures of two locations within the enclosure at various electronics power consumption levels may be entered into a 2-D plot. An approximation of the 2-D plot may be effected with an appropriate equation to be solved for ambient temperature. The data of the 2-D plot plus temperatures of a third location and air flow levels in the enclosure may be entered into a 3-D plot. An approximation of the 3-D plot may be effected with an appropriate equation to be solved for ambient temperature.
US08954286B2
A waveform acquiring unit acquires a time waveform of an electromagnetic wave. The time waveform is decomposed into wavelet expansion coefficients by wavelet transform. Influence levels of the respective wavelet expansion coefficients to a spectrum are calculated. The wavelet expansion coefficients are weighted based on at least the influence levels of the wavelet expansion coefficients to the spectrum. The weighted wavelet expansion coefficients are converted into time waveforms by inverse wavelet transform. Thus, the time waveforms that holds spectrum information needed for spectroscopic analysis and has a reduced noise is provided.
US08954285B2
A device and a method are suitable for use in measuring electric current within an electrical system. The device comprises a current sensor for generating a first signal representative of the electric current within at least one portion of the electrical system, a processor coupled to the output of the current sensor for digitally generating a second signal representative of electric current data based on the first signal, and a transceiver coupled to the processor, where the transceiver transmits the electric current data representative of the second signal to a data collection unit for storage and analysis. The device can be used in the electrical systems of vehicles such as automobiles and trucks; construction, agriculture, and mining equipment; trains; aircraft; and stationary equipment such as generators.
US08954277B2
A visual image monitoring system for use in association with a vehicular navigation system is operable to locate traffic cameras and transmit visual images from the traffic cameras along at least first and second routes to a destination so as to provide a visual comparison of traffic conditions to the vehicle operator.
US08954275B2
Systems and methods for preparing and presenting schematic maps, which are maps that present information in a format that presents only information that is most relevant to a given situation in order to provide a simple and clear representation sufficient to aid a user in guidance or orientation. The schematic maps as described herein can be formatted based on the attributes of a display on which they are presented so that the map layout and presentation can be optimized for the particular display. The schematic maps can be “distorted” to better illustrate important maps areas in greater detail and using a relatively larger display area while deemphasizing less important map areas by illustrating them in less detail and using a relatively smaller display area, and thus the schematic maps can be devoid of adherence to a particular scale.
US08954272B2
Tracking systems using multi-object-tracking (MOT) combine data from a plurality of sensors (101) to derive a state estimate of one or more objects (103) are described. The interfaces to the sensors (101) are such that different ones of the sensors (101) can be used. The tracking (102) in the system consists of different blocks for state estimation (104), object's existence estimation (106), and data association (105). To utilize the data of a sensor, the sensor data and the system which is observed is modeled using the Bayesian filtering framework. All interfaces of the system, i.e. the interfaces between the sensors (101) and the MOT system as well as of the blocks in the MOT are of a characteristic that ensures that only compatible models are used with each other already when designing the system.
US08954262B2
Disclosed are algorithms and agent-based structures for a system and technique for analyzing and managing the airspace. The technique includes managing bulk properties of large numbers of heterogeneous multidimensional aircraft trajectories in an airspace, for the purpose of maintaining or increasing system safety, and to identify possible phase transition structures to predict when an airspace will approach the limits of its capacity. The paths of the multidimensional aircraft trajectories are continuously recalculated in the presence of changing conditions (traffic, exclusionary airspace, weather, for example) while optimizing performance measures and performing trajectory conflict detection and resolution. Such trajectories are represented as extended objects endowed with pseudo-potential, maintaining objectives for time, acceleration limits, and fuel-efficient paths by bending just enough to accommodate separation.
US08954260B2
Methods and systems are provided for assessing a target proximate a vehicle. A location and a velocity of the target are obtained. The location and the velocity of the target are mapped onto a polar coordinate system via a processor. A likelihood that the vehicle and the target will collide is determined using the mapping.
US08954256B2
The vehicle-use speed control apparatus sets a virtual preceding vehicle assumed to run at a target speed at a predetermined initial distance ahead of the own vehicle when the brake pedal is operated causing a relative speed between the actual vehicle speed and the target speed exceeds a predetermined value, calculates an initial value of a performance index for approach and alienation based on the initial distance and the target speed. Thereafter, the vehicle-use speed control apparatus repeatedly calculates a following distance to the virtual preceding vehicle based on a time elapsed from when a speed control start condition is satisfied, the current relative speed and the initial distance, and a target relative speed based on the initial distance, the initial value of the performance index and the following distance, and controls the vehicle speed based on the difference between the target relative speed and the actual relative speed.
US08954255B1
Aspects of the present disclosure are directed towards hysteresis engaged vehicle cruise control apparatuses, and systems and methods that facilitate energy efficiency as a function of external energy obstacles. The method and system includes an adaptable terrain-based speed profile and terrain-based work function for maintaining a vehicle at a desired speed and selected speed range. The speed profile further includes a terrain-based driving preference associated with an identifier that identifies a particular driver and driving profile. Vehicle-related data is generated with regard to energy efficiency obstacles, and vehicle speed is automatically adjusted based on this data to facilitate fuel economy. In certain embodiments, vehicle-related data is sent to a cloud-computing system for processing. In other embodiments, the desired speed and terrain-based speed profile is influenced by user or external inputs.
US08954253B2
A brake-pedal depression force estimation device includes: a first deceleration calculation unit which uses a vehicle-mounted wheel speed sensor to calculate a first estimated vehicle-body deceleration for the vehicle; a second deceleration calculation unit which uses a vehicle-mounted vehicle-body acceleration sensor to calculate a second estimated vehicle-body deceleration for the vehicle; a gradient acquisition unit which acquires the gradient of change for the first estimated vehicle-body deceleration; and a depression force determination unit which determines if the brake-pedal depression force applied by a driver is high or not. The gradient acquisition unit acquires a first gradient of change and a second gradient of change. The depression force determination unit is configured so as to determine the brake-pedal depression force applied by a driver to be high when the second gradient of change is equal to or exceeds the first gradient of change.
US08954250B2
An electronic control unit performs driving force reduction control to reduce the driving force of a driving wheel of the vehicle. Then, if an accelerator pedal is operated after the lapse of a predetermined time since detection of an obstacle that may collide with a vehicle, the electronic control unit brakes the driving wheel as driving force reduction control.
US08954246B2
A vehicle includes an automatic transmission and a set of sensor inputs providing values indicating a current operational status of the vehicle pertinent to controlling the automatic transmission. The set of sensor inputs include: engine speed, engine torque, current transmission gear; and vehicle speed. The vehicle includes a programmed processor configured to iteratively and co-dependently generate a vehicle mass parameter value and a grade of incline parameter value. The programmed processor, when generating the vehicle mass parameter value and the grade of incline parameter value, uses a set of parameters including: a propulsive force driving the vehicle; a set of forces acting on the vehicle resisting forward movement, and an observed rate of change of a speed of the vehicle.
US08954243B2
Tip-off is a process of bringing a transport vehicle to a target weight by using only part of a bucket of a loader. By observing sensor data, tip-off may be automatically determined. Once determined, a visual indication may be made to an operator, allowing the operator to both confirm that tip-off mode is active and to show what tip-off mode is selected, truck tip-off or pile tip-off. Among other benefits, automatic tip-off allows an operator to maintain contact with the loader controls when entering tip-off mode of operation.
US08954241B2
This disclosure is generally drawn to methods, systems, devices and/or apparatus related to aligning a mining truck with a shovel. Specifically, some of the disclosed example methods, systems, devices and/or apparatus relate to semi-automatic and/or automatic alignment of mining trucks relative to shovel during mining loading operations.
US08954240B2
An active suspension seat for use in a vehicle incorporates a swivel enabling the active suspension seat to be rotated about a vertical axis towards and away from a position appropriate for use in driving the vehicle, and incorporates a seat controller operating a brake to prevent such rotation away from that appropriate position in response to an indication that the vehicle is in motion, and limiting the active suspension to being enabled only when the seat is in the appropriate position for use in driving.
US08954236B2
A device combining motor driven power steering with a compressor, may include a deceleration gearbox connected to a steering shaft, a motor selectively providing a steering force to the deceleration gearbox, a first electronic clutch mounted between the deceleration gearbox and a first shaft of the motor, and transmitting or discontinuing transmission of power from the motor to the deceleration gearbox, a power transmitting gear set transmitting power from the motor to a compressor, a second electronic clutch mounted between a second shaft of the motor and an input side of the power transmitting gear set, and transmitting or discontinuing transmission of power from the motor to the power transmitting gear set, and the compressor for an air conditioner, connected to an output side of the power transmitting gear set.
US08954230B2
In telematics device mounted to a vehicle, an auxiliary processor detects an interrupt from an accelerometer and forwards the interrupt to a main processor—the interrupt wakes up the processor from a sleep mode. The main processor may then compare vehicle voltage and/or a value for a speed parameter to predetermined criteria to determine whether the interrupt was a false positive or if the accelerometer missed a detection of a user cranking up the vehicle. The main processor may also enter a conditional state if monitored information meets a minimum threshold. During the conditional state, the processor may operate according to rules for a current operational state and also according to rules for a changed state. The threshold for deeming a changed operational state is higher than for entering a conditional state to evaluate whether a change of operational state (i.e., on to off, or off to on) occurred.
US08954215B2
A hybrid electric vehicle has a traction motor, a driveline connected to a vehicle wheel, and a controller. The controller is configured to control motor torque through a region surrounding vehicle wheel torque reversal, control driveline input torque during torque reversal of driveline output torque to limit rate of change of driveline output torque, and control motor torque during a torque reversal of at least one driveline component to limit rate of change of the torque applied to the driveline component. A method for controlling a vehicle having a traction motor includes controlling the traction motor torque through a region surrounding a vehicle wheel torque reversal, controlling driveline input torque during torque reversal of driveline output torque to limit rate of change of output torque, and controlling traction motor torque during a torque reversal of a powertrain component to limit rate of change of the torque applied to the component.
US08954210B2
The present disclosure is directed to a distributed control system for a locomotive. The distributed system may include a network and a plurality of electronic modules distributed within a locomotive. Each of the electronic modules is communicatively coupled to the network in a standardized scalable architecture. Each of the electronic modules may include at least a configurable controller that is reconfigurable to implement at least one control function associated with distributed control of the locomotive.
US08954205B2
In one example, we describe a method and infrastructure for DSRC V2X (vehicle to infrastructure plus vehicle) system. In one example, some of connected vehicle applications require data from infrastructure road side equipment (RSE). Examples of such applications are road intersection safety application which mostly requires map and traffic signal phase data to perform the appropriate threat assessment. The examples given cover different dimensions of the above issue: (1) It provides methods of RSE of interest selection based solely on the derived relative geometric data between the host vehicle and the RSE's, in addition to some of the host vehicle data, such as heading. (2) It provides methods of RSE of interest selection when detailed map data is communicated or when some generic map data is available. (3) It provides methods of RSE of interest selection when other vehicles data is available. Other variations and cases are also given.
US08954204B2
A collision sensor, a collision sensing system, and a method of mounting a collision sensor to a vehicle are disclosed herein. An embodiment of the collision sensor includes, but is not limited to, a processor and a three-axis accelerometer that is communicatively coupled with the processor. The three-axis accelerometer is configured to detect an acceleration experienced by a vehicle and to generate a signal indicative of the acceleration. The processor is configured to obtain the signal from the three-axis accelerometer and to determine when the vehicle has experienced a collision based, at least in part, on the signal.
US08954202B2
A computer is supplied with information about a measurement sequence to be implemented by a medical imaging system, and determines at least one group of preliminary control sequences for power supply devices of the medical imaging system so that the power control devices are caused to control image-influencing emission devices of the imaging medical system corresponding to the control sequences. Using a model of the image-influencing emission devices and their respective power control devices, and their respective initial load state, the computer determines whether a load state curve for those devices is below a load limit, and emits a final control sequence for those devices that are determined to be below the limit.
US08954201B2
Feedback is provided to a user based on a setting for a set of energy consuming devices. While a user modifies a thermostat's schedule or provides user commands to adjust a setting for the set of energy consuming devices, a user interface component generates feedback to the consumer in response to an adjusted setting based on a condition for a predetermined function. A positive feedback component generates a positive feedback, such as a positive image in the user interface if the setting meets or exceeds a recommended performance metric for an operational parameter for the set of energy consuming devices. A negative feedback component generates a negative feedback, such as a negative image if the setting meets or exceeds a second condition, such as a discouraged performance metric.
US08954197B2
An arrangement includes a computer server management system, a data management station of a building environmental control system and a data interface therebetween. The computer server management system is configured to coordinate the usage of a plurality of server computers, the computer server management system executing virtualization software configured to manage application processing on the plurality of server computers located in at least one data center. The data management station is operably coupled to controllers, sensors and actuators of the building environmental control system. The data management station is configured to provide at least some data via the data interface to the computer server management data system.
US08954195B2
System (100) and methods (500) for remotely controlling a slave device (102). The methods involve: using a Hybrid Hand Controller (“HHC”) as a full haptic controller to control the slave device when the HHC (406) is coupled to a docking station (460); detecting when the HHC is or is being physically de-coupled from the docking station; automatically and seamlessly transitioning an operational mode of at least the HHC from a full haptic control mode to a gestural control mode, in response to a detection that the HHC is or is being de-coupled from the docking station; and using at least the HHC as a portable gestural controller to control the slave device when the HHC is de-coupled from the docking station.
US08954194B2
A system increases an operator's situational awareness while the operator controls a remote vehicle. The system comprises an operator control unit having a point-and-click interface configured to allow the operator to view an environment surrounding the remote vehicle and control the remote vehicle, and a payload attached to the remote vehicle and in communication with at least one of the remote vehicle and the operator control unit. The payload comprises an integrated sensor suite including GPS, an inertial measurement unit, a stereo vision camera, and a range sensor, and a computational module receiving data from the GPS, the inertial measurement unit, the stereo vision camera, and the range sensor and providing data to a CPU including at least one of an autonomous behavior and a semi-autonomous behavior that utilize data from the integrated sensor suite.
US08954189B2
Sonic embodiments provide an agricultural commodity distribution system that provides secure distribution of an agricultural commodity to an authorized person. In some embodiments, the system comprises a server computing device, a data storage associated with the computing device, and a controller that activates the distribution to the authorized person. In some embodiments, the server is communicably connected to a mobile communication device of a person such that the person can send the distribution request to the server via the mobile communication device. The server of some embodiments is associated with the data storage such that the server can validate the distribution request against data stored in the data storage. The server of some embodiments is also communicably connected to the controller such that the server transmits an activation code to the controller when the distribution request is validated.
US08954185B2
A cut optimization system controls chatter in a machine tool during a cutting operation. A microphone is configured to capture acoustic noise emitted by the machine tool during the cutting operation and to generate an AC signal corresponding to the captured acoustic noise. A filter is configured to attenuate frequencies of the AC signal outside of a frequency band and a rectifier is configured to rectify the filtered AC signal into a DC component. A controller is configured to compare the DC component with a threshold value and, if the DC component is greater than the threshold, cyclically vary the rotational speed of a spindle in the machine tool from a commanded speed.
US08954183B2
A method of manufacturing in which a robot arm is used to pick up a workpiece which is subsequently scanned by a scanner and positioned relative to a manufacturing system for manufacturing in order to eliminate the use of a bespoke jig.
US08954181B2
A dental Computer-aided design (CAD)/Computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) system forms a custom dental preparation guide for guiding a dental tool that alters a shapes a tooth structure to which a custom prosthetic dental item is to be attached. The system acquires an optical measurement and an x-ray of at least one dental structure. The system correlates the acquired optical measurement and the x-ray to form a model of the at least one dental structure. The system generates a model of a reduced tooth structure based on the model of the at least one dental structure. The system also provides at least one dental preparation guide based on the model of the reduced tooth structure.
US08954177B2
A mechanism is provided for automatically controlling the operation of a media device based at least in part upon whether a portable presentation device coupled to the media device is currently being worn by a user. A portable presentation device may be any device that is meant to be worn by a user and that is capable of presenting media content to the user (e.g. earphones, headphones, goggles or faceplates with video/audio capability, etc.). With this mechanism, a user can affect the operation of the media device by simply putting on or taking off the portable presentation device. The user does not need to manually manipulate the controls of the media device. By automatically controlling the operation of the media device in this manner, use of the media device and the portable presentation device as a unit is made much simpler and more convenient.
US08954175B2
A system and method are described for selecting a target sound object from a sound mixture. In embodiments, a sound mixture comprises a plurality of sound objects superimposed in time. A user can select one of these sound objects by providing reference audio data corresponding to a reference sound object. The system analyzes the audio data and the reference audio data to identify a portion of the audio data corresponding to a target sound object in the mixture that is most similar to the reference sound object. The analysis may include decomposing the reference audio data into a plurality of reference components and the sound mixture into a plurality of components guided by the reference components. The target sound object can be re-synthesized from the target components.
US08954165B2
The present technology is directed generally to a lead anchor for positioning and securing spinal cord modulation leads and associated systems and methods. In at least some contexts, the lead anchor includes a central lumen surrounded by a restriction feature. The restriction feature can interface with a tightening screw or other actuator and can be configured to provide a radial compressive fit around the lead body. In some embodiments, the clamp can be disengaged upon twisting or other unlocking motion to release the lead.
US08954164B2
An electrical stimulator line protector, comprising a case having an upper surface and a lower surface, the case configured for implantation in the scalp or other subcutaneous areas of a patient; a storage slot disposed between the upper surface and the lower surface of the case, the slot configured to allow at least one electrical line to coil therearound, the upper surface, the lower surface and the slot to thereby shield the line.
US08954163B2
A medical cable connector of a medical cable receives a medical lead while an electrical receptacle within the medical cable connector is placed into a distal position relative to an outer body of the medical cable connector. The electrical receptacle is retracted to a proximal position once insertion of the medical lead into the medical cable connector is completed. The electrical receptacle may be mounted to an inner body which moves relative to the outer body. A biasing member may be present to bias the inner body to a particular position. A slider may be present to provide a clinician with a surface to touch when applying force to position the electrical receptacle in the distal position for insertion of the medical lead. Various other features may be present to facilitate insertion of the medical lead and/or to maintain the position of the electrical receptacle relative to the outer body.
US08954159B2
Fitting a multi-channel cochlear implant system to an implanted patient is described. A fit map database is accessed that contains parameter data from fit maps of previously measured cochlear implant patients. For subsets of signal channels in each fit map, an average deviation is established between estimated parameter values and measured parameter values across signal channels not in a given subset based on measured parameter values of signal channels in the given subset. For a given number of signal channels, a subset of the same number of signal channels is identified that has a minimum average deviation. Then fit parameters for signal channels in the identified subset are measured and fit parameters for the remaining signal channels not in the identified subset are estimated.
US08954153B2
It has been discovered that pain felt in a given region of the body can be treated, not by motor point stimulation of muscle in the local region where pain is felt, but by stimulating muscle close to a “nerve of passage” in a region that is superior (i.e., cranial or upstream toward the spinal column) to the region where pain is felt. Spinal nerves such as the intercostal nerves or nerves passing through a nerve plexus, which comprise trunks that divide by divisions and/or cords into branches, comprise “nerves of passage.”
US08954152B2
Methods and apparatuses are disclosed for potentiating a favorable brain state that is associated with relief in symptoms of a brain condition. Techniques include monitoring one or more brain signals and detecting an episode of a favorable brain state based on the one or more brain signals, the favorable brain state associated with a decrease in one or more symptoms of a brain condition of the patient. Then, in response to the detection of the favorable brain state episode, electrical stimulation that potentiates the favorable brain state is delivered to the brain of the patient, the electrical stimulation delivered within a window of time opened for detection of each favorable brain state episode.
US08954128B2
Devices and methods are described for providing continuous measurement of an analyte concentration. In some embodiments, the device has a sensing mechanism and a sensing membrane that includes at least one surface-active group-containing polymer and that is located over the sensing mechanism. The sensing membrane may have a bioprotective layer configured to substantially block the effect and/or influence of non-constant noise-causing species.
US08954127B2
According to embodiments, techniques for estimating scalogram energy values in a wedge region of a scalogram are disclosed. A pulse oximetry system including a sensor or probe may be used to receive a photoplethysmograph (PPG) signal from a patient or subject. A scalogram, corresponding to the obtained PPG signal, may be determined. In an arrangement, energy values in the wedge region of the scalogram may be estimated by calculating a set of estimation locations in the wedge region and estimating scalogram energy values at each location. In an arrangement, scalogram energy values may be estimated based on an estimation scheme and by combining scalogram values in a vicinity region. In an arrangement, the vicinity region may include energy values in a resolved region of the scalogram and previously estimated energy values in the wedge region of the scalogram. In an arrangement, one or more signal parameters may be determined based on the resolved and estimated values of the scalogram.
US08954126B2
A superconductive electrical direct current cable with at least two conductors insulated relative to each other is indicated, where the cable is placed with at least two conductors insulated relative to each other, where the conductors are arranged in a cryostat suitable for guidance of the cooling agent, wherein the cryostat is composed of at least one metal pipe which is surrounded by a circumferentially closed layer with thermally insulating properties. In the cryostat is arranged a strand-shaped carrier composed of insulating material, where the carrier has at least two diametrically oppositely located outwardly open grooves in each of which is arranged one of the conductors. Each conductor is composed of a plurality of superconductive elements.
US08954116B2
The invention discloses an electronic terminal and a ringtone prompt method for the electronic terminal. A control module of the electronic terminal instructs a ringtone sound source module to play a test ringtone signal, and instructs a ringtone channel switch system to switch all sound channels one by one to output the test ringtone signal; a sound collection module collects an exterior sound signal while each channel is outputting the test ringtone signal and feeds it back to a signal processing module; the signal processing module processes the intensity of the test ringtone signal therein; the control module determines the output channel of a prompt ringtone signal according to the processing result of the collected signal, instructs the ringtone channel switch system to switch to the determined output channel, and instructs the ringtone sound source module to play the prompt ringtone signal.
US08954109B2
The present invention provides a control function in an access point, switch, or like node on a wireless local area network. The control function operates to ensure frames transmitted by a user terminal are transmitted using an appropriate transmission priority scheme. The control function will assist and provide an appropriate priority level to the user terminal. Frames transmitted from the user terminal are passed through the control function, which will analyze priority level information provided in the frames to determine if the frames were transmitted using the appropriate transmission priority scheme. An enforcement action may be taken in response to identifying frames that were not transmitted using the appropriate transmission priority scheme.
US08954098B2
A short message processing method and apparatus, which analyzes a short message received from a mobile communication network and provides via a packet data service node (PDSN) a supplementary service such as a credit card settlement details notifying service, a contact point registration service, a spam filtering service, a schedule registration service, a message history management service, and so forth, based on the result of the analysis. The short message processing method and apparatus can execute a supplementary service corresponding to the short message received through a PDSN, in corporation with a platform such as WIPI or BREW.
US08954097B1
Disclosed herein are methods and systems for implementing dynamic modulation schemes based on paging area. In one embodiment, a radio access network (RAN) receives a request to page a user equipment (UE), and identifies the cell in which the UE was last registered. The RAN sends one or more paging requests in one or more cells, where the respective modulation coding scheme (MCS) that the RAN selects for each such paging request depends at least in part on the distance of the receiving cell from the cell in which the UE was last registered.
US08954096B2
A method and apparatus for detecting insertion of a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card in a portable terminal are provided, in which a SIM card is inserted into a SIM card connector, and a controller continuously supplies an operating voltage to a predetermined pin of the SIM card connector, determines whether a voltage level of the predetermined pin of the SIM card connector changes in a predetermined pattern, and determines that the SIM card has been inserted into the SIM card connector if the voltage level of the predetermined pin of the SIM card connector changes in the predetermined pattern.
US08954094B1
According to an embodiment, a method, system and computer program product of providing a user with a transportation mode transition location is provided. The method begins with monitoring movement of a mobile device associated with the user using a first transportation mode. Based on monitoring of the movement of the mobile device associated with the user, determining that the user has made a transition from the first transportation mode to a second transportation mode. An estimated location of the transition location is stored. Finally, the estimated location of the transition is provided to the user.
US08954093B2
A method of managing place data for a mobile device, the method comprising storing place data for a place in a centralized place database and receiving input to specify which one or more applications on the mobile device are to have access to the place data for the place. In response to a place data request from a data-requesting application executing on the mobile device, the device determines if the data-requesting application has access to the place data for the place and provides the place data to the data-requesting application only if the data-requesting application has access. This technology enables the device to control the sharing of place data among applications on the device.
US08954091B1
A system and method for wayfinding at a venue is disclosed herein. The system includes a mobile communication device and a venue. The mobile communication device includes an application for wayfinding at the venue and a plurality of sensors. The mobile communication device is configured to track a path of the mobile communication device from the first fixed geographical location utilizing a plurality of sensors of the mobile communication device.
US08954079B2
A mobile communication system and method for managing the base station identifiers is provided. The method includes transmitting macro base station information from a terminal to a first pico base station; transmitting a Neighbor Relation Table (NRT) including the macro base station information from the first pico base station to a Self Organizing Network (SON) server; determining, at the SON server, whether a second pico base station using same Physical Cell Identifier (PCI) as the first pico base station exists by comparing a previously stored NRT with the received NRT; and reallocating, at the SON server, upon determining that the second pico base station uses the same PCI as the first pico base station, new PCIs to the first and second pico base stations.
US08954075B2
A mobile communications system is described in which an E-UTRAN base station dynamically changes its handover and/or its cell reselection parameters to control the load on the base station and which transmits a message to a non E-UTRAN neighboring cell, so that it can adapt its handover and/or its cell reselection parameters to avoid repeated handover and/or cell reselection of a mobile communications device between the non E-UTRAN cell and the E-UTRAN cell.
US08954072B2
A method and apparatus for cell update while in a Cell_FACH state are disclosed. After selecting a target cell, system information is read from the target cell including high speed downlink shared channel (HS-DSCH) common system information. A radio network temporary identity (RNTI) received in a source cell is cleared and a variable HS_DSCH_RECEPTION is set to TRUE. An HS-DSCH medium access control (MAC-hs) entity is configured based on the HS-DSCH common system information. High speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) transmission is then received in the target cell. A CELL UPDATE message is sent to notify of a cell change. The HSDPA transmission may be received using a common H-RNTI broadcast in the system information, a reserved H-RNTI as requested in a CELL UPDATE message, or a temporary identity which is a subset of a U-RNTI. The MAC-hs entity may be reset.
US08954070B2
A method and system for selecting a communication network by a wireless communication device (106) includes receiving (310) an identification parameter at the wireless communication device from a communication network which identifies the communication network. Next, the method compares (312) the identification parameter with a list at the wireless communication device to determine (314) service information. The service information identifies the services supported by the communication network. The method further includes comparing (316) the service information with a service-related datum at the wireless communication device that indicates the services desired by the wireless communication device. Lastly, the method includes selecting (318) the communication network for accessing a requested service if the service information matches the service-related datum.
US08954068B2
Techniques for transferring new capability information in an efficient and backward compatible manner are described. A user equipment (UE) may send a new capability indicator to a wireless network to indicate that the UE has new capability information to send. This new capability indicator may be implemented with a spare bit in an information element included in an initial message sent to the network. The network may request for the information or indicate that it can receive the information. The UE may then send the new capability information to the network upon receiving the request or the indication. Alternatively, the network may convey that it supports transfer of new capability information, e.g., via a broadcast message or a unicast message. The UE may then send new capability information at any time to the network, without having to send the new capability indicator.
US08954063B2
Methods and apparatus for assigning, identifying and controlling broadcast transmissions are disclosed. A broadcast flow is assigned to a broadcast logical channel of the physical resources of a wireless communication channel. A broadcast channel control message indicative of parameters of the broadcast logical channel is generated. Upon receipt, the broadcast channel control message is processed and used to accordingly process the received broadcast transmission.
US08954052B2
The present invention discloses a method and system for implementing measurement. The method comprises: a report status of a measurement task is detected, a User Equipment (UE) no longer measures the current measurement task if the report status is that the current measurement task has been finished or will not continue being reported, or the User Equipment (UE) continues measuring the current measurement task if the report status is that the current measurement task is not finished or will continue being reported. By adopting the present invention, the UE is free from unnecessary measurements when the reporting of the measurement task is not needed, which relieves the measurement burden of the UE.
US08954045B2
Techniques for managing resources at a wireless device are described. In one aspect, the wireless device controls applications based on resource demands and available resources. Processing demands by the applications may be monitored, and at least one of the applications may be controlled based on the processing demands and a maximum processing capacity of a processing unit executing the applications. A data application may be controlled by reducing the amount of data exchanged by the application when high processing demands are detected, and vice versa. In another aspect, the wireless device varies resource capacity to match resources demands. The processing capacity of the processing unit may be adjusted based on the processing demands. Higher clock frequency may be selected for the processing unit when the processing demands exceed a high threshold, and lower clock frequency may be selected when processing demands fall below a low threshold.
US08954042B2
Aspects include methods, systems, and apparatuses for increasing a likelihood of advertisement display. The method may include receiving advertisement information comprising a presentation schedule and indicia indicating the first advertisement; determining, based upon the advertisement information, whether the first advertisement is located on a mobile device; retrieving the first advertisement from a remote device and storing it on a storage module on the mobile device if the first advertisement is determined to not be located on the mobile device; and rendering the first advertisement on the mobile device. The method may also include receiving advertisement information comprising a retrieval schedule and retrieving the first advertisement from a remote device by reference to the retrieval schedule. Other methods and apparatuses include determining and broadcasting advertisement information.
US08954038B2
Methods and systems for dynamic treatment of callers are described. Optionally, a communication system may include an application installed on a user communication device. The communication system may be utilized to receive and screen calls, enable a user to specify which calling parties may bypass a low indication mode and/or a non-indication mode, challenge callers, and/or identify urgent calls.
US08954037B2
System and method of signaling the importance of a transmission in a wireless communications network
A method of communicating an importance level of a call to a recipient mobile device is disclosed. The method includes receiving call information for a particular call at a mobile switching center and generating an initial address message for the particular call. The initial address message may include a notification value field. The method further includes determining whether an importance level has been designated for the particular call, setting a value of the notification value field based on whether an importance level has been designated for the particular call, and transmitting the initial address message for the particular call to a recipient mobile device.
US08954025B2
A communications radio has an IF stage with an associated filter array. The array includes at least one narrowband filter whose passband is less than 3 MHz, at least one wideband filter whose passband is 3 MHz or greater, a first switch with a common pole connected to an input terminal of the array, a second switch with a common pole connected to an output terminal of the array, a third switch whose common pole is operatively connected to the input terminal, and a fourth switch whose common pole is operatively connected to the output terminal. The first and the second switches cooperate to insert a selected filter between the first and second terminals. The third and the fourth switches cooperate to insert the filter array into either a receive signal path when the radio is in a receive mode, or a transmit signal path when in a transmit mode.
US08954020B2
An entire radio transceiver can be completely integrated into one IC chip. In order to integrate the IF filters on the chip, a heterodyne architecture with a low IF is used. A single, directly modulated VCO is used for both up-conversion during transmission, and down-conversion during reception. Bond-wires are used as resonators in the oscillator tank for the VCO. A TDD scheme is used in the air interface to eliminate cross-talk or leakage. A Gaussian-shaped binary FSK modulation scheme is used to provide a number of other implementation advantages.
US08954019B2
A mobile wireless communications device may include an antenna, LTE RF differential inputs, and a front end circuit. The front end circuit may include band pass filters coupled to the antenna, LNAs coupled respectively to the band pass filters, and RF switching circuits. Each RF switching circuit may be respectively coupled between each LNA and a pair of LTE RF differential inputs and configured to switch to one or both of the pair of LTE RF differential inputs.
US08954016B2
A method, in the case of which it is monitored in a wireless adapter connected to a field device whether, in the context of communication with the field device, a status change of the field device is being reported. In case a status change has been reported, the wireless adapter queries for expanded status information of the field device. The expanded status information is transmitted event-controlled from the wireless adapter to a superordinated communication unit and provided through such to an evaluation tool, in case a comparison of the expanded status information with a status pattern adapted specifically for the field device shows that the relevant, expanded status information should be evaluated.
US08953999B2
A satellite signal reception device can reliably execute a satellite signal reception process. The satellite signal reception device has a reception time setting unit 71 that sets a reception time; a timekeeping unit that keeps internal time; and a scheduled reception control unit 72 that executes a time-based reception process that operates the reception unit when the time kept by the timekeeping unit reaches the reception time. By having a scheduled reception control unit 72, the reception process can be executed when the internal time goes to the reception time set by the reception time setting unit 71. The reception process is therefore executed once a day. The satellite signal reception process can therefore be executed reliably without being affected by how the device is used, the season, weather, or other factors.
US08953996B2
A fixing apparatus according to an embodiment includes: a first roller; a second roller that forms a nip between the second roller and the first roller and presses a sheet passing through the nip against the first roller; a heater that heats at least one of the first roller and the second roller, a heating range of the heater being greater than a maximum printing width of a predetermined maximum sheet width, and a heat-uniformizing member that distributes heat of the heater along a longitudinal direction thereof, an effective length of the heat-uniformizing member in the longitudinal direction being the same as, or greater than, the predetermined maximum sheet width.
US08953994B2
A fixing device that fixes an image on a recording medium includes a rotatable endless belt, deployed in a loop supported by rollers, a nip forming member provided inside the loop formed by the belt, a support member that supports the nip forming member, a counter rotation body disposed outside the loop formed by the belt and configured to form a nip with the belt by being in contact with the nip forming member through the belt, and a heat source configured to heat the belt directly by a radiant heat except at the nip. The support member includes a base portion that contacts the nip forming member and two arms extending from the base portion in a direction away from the nip forming member to partially surround a part of heat generating portion of the heat source.
US08953991B2
A fixing device includes a fixing member configured to heat and fix a toner image onto a recording medium; a pressurizing member configured to press a heating member, which is used for heating the fixing member, against the fixing member and form a fixing nip part; and a guide member configured to guide the recording medium away from the fixing member and the pressurizing member at a downstream side of the fixing member or the pressurizing member in a conveying direction of the recording medium. The guide member includes a pushing unit for maintaining a relative positional relationship between the guide member and an outer peripheral surface of the fixing member or the pressurizing member, and the pushing unit is provided in a manner as to follow surface characteristics of outer peripheral parts of the fixing member or the pressurizing member where the pushing unit pushes.
US08953984B2
A rotating part for an image forming apparatus includes a drive member for transmitting power; and a driven member that is rotated by the drive member. The drive member has a male part formed in a direction of a rotation axis, and the driven member has a female part that is formed in the direction of the rotation axis and into which the male part is inserted. The male part is a hexagonal male part whose cross section perpendicular to the rotation axis assumes a hexagonal shape. The female part is a twisted triangular female part that assumes a triangular cross sectional profile in a direction perpendicular to the rotation axis, and a triangle which forms a cross section of a base and a cross section of a top is twisted at a predetermined angle with respect to the rotation axis.
US08953981B2
A cartridge includes: a rotational body; a joint member having a first joint-side engagement part configured to be engaged to a rotational body-side engagement part with a predetermined moving range in a rotational direction, and a press member, wherein the joint member has a second joint-side engagement part configured to be engaged with a transfer-side engagement part with central axes of the joint member and the driving force transfer member being substantially matched, and wherein when the second joint-side engagement part is contacted to the driving force transfer member at a position at which the central axes of the joint member and the driving force transfer member are not matched, the joint member is rotated within the predetermined range and the second joint-side engagement part is thus moved, so that the second joint-side engagement part is engaged with the transfer-side-engagement part in the rotational direction.
US08953972B2
Provided are a transfer roller cleaning apparatus that has a supply roller that is immersed in the carrier liquid in a carrier liquid vessel; a cleaning roller that is rubbed and rotated on the supply roller and the transfer roller, and supplies the carrier liquid received from the supply roller to a surface of the transfer roller; and a carrier liquid circulation device which includes the carrier liquid vessel, supplies the carrier liquid in a storage tank to the carrier liquid vessel using a pump, and sends the carrier liquid overflowed from the carrier liquid vessel back to the storage tank via an overflow liquid recovery path, so as to constitute a carrier liquid circulation path and an electronic photograph printer configured by providing the same.
US08953967B2
A fixation device includes a fixation member including a heating member, a pressure-application member press-contacting the fixation member forming a nip portion, an exciting coil induction-heating the heating member, a first temperature detection unit detecting a first temperature of the pressure-application member or a first ambient temperature of the fixation member, a second temperature detection unit detecting a second temperature of the fixation member, and a control unit selecting a temperature control mode or power control mode controlling power to the exciting coil. When the first temperature exceeds a first threshold temperature or the first ambient temperature exceeds a first ambient threshold temperature, the control unit selects the temperature control mode, and while the first temperature is equal to or lower than the first threshold temperature or the first ambient temperature is equal to or lower than the first ambient threshold temperature, the control unit selects the power control mode.
US08953960B2
A fixing device includes a fixing rotation body heating and fixing an unfixed image onto a recording medium; a pressing rotation body pressing the recording medium to the fixing rotation body; a first temperature detection unit detecting a temperature of the fixing rotation body; and plural second temperature detection units detecting a temperature of the pressing rotation body. Further the fixing device selects a predetermined second temperature detection unit from the plural second temperature detection units depending on an operation mode of the fixing device, and the fixing device detects the temperature of the pressing rotation body by using the predetermined second temperature detection unit selected by the fixing device.
US08953958B2
According to an embodiment, an image forming apparatus transfers an unfixed developer image carried on an image carrier on a sheet of paper in a transfer section and fixes the unfixed developer image to the sheet of paper in a fixing section, and includes: a paper feeding section which accommodates a sheet of paper to be reused where the developer image is erased using a first developer including decolorizing function and feeds a paper to the transfer section, and a management information generation section which forms on the sheet of paper a developer adhesion quantity of the developer image formed on the sheet of paper to be reused as the management information using the first developer.
US08953957B2
An image forming apparatus includes an image forming unit including a latent image carrier, a charging device, a latent image writing device, and a development device; a cumulative value calculation device that calculates, for each of regions of a surface of the image carrier, a cumulative value of the area of a latent image formed in the region; a surface potential detector that detects the surface potential of the image carrier in one of the regions as a detection region; and a determination device that determines the deterioration degree of the detection region on the basis of the detected potential, and determines the deterioration degree of a region other than the detection region on the basis of the detected potential, the cumulative value for the detection region, and the cumulative value for the region other than the detection region.
US08953952B2
An optical receiver, a method of operating an optical receiver, a correction based transimpedance amplifier circuit, and a method of adjusting an output of a transimpedance amplifier. In one embodiment, the optical receiver comprises an optical-to-electrical converter, a transimpedance amplifier, and a correction circuit. The optical-to-electrical converter is provided for receiving an optical signal and converting the optical signal to an electrical signal. The transimpedance amplifier is provided for receiving the electrical signal from the converter and for generating from the electrical signal an amplified electrical signal. The amplified electrical signal has inter symbol interference resulting from a reduced bandwidth of the transimpedance amplifier. The correction circuit is provided for receiving the electrical signal from the amplifier and for generating, from the electrical signal, an output signal including corrections for the inter symbol interference in the amplified electrical signal effectively increasing a bandwidth of the optical receiver.
US08953950B2
A ultra high speed photonic Analog to Digital Converted (ADC) for sampling and quantizing an electrical voltage signal, internally enabled by photonics uses coherent optical detection architectures for photonic quantization. Coherent light is phase modulated by the test signal. Using an interferometer, or an array of interferometers the phase of modulated light is compared with a reference light. Flash ADC, successive approximation ADC and delta-sigma ADC configurations are presented.
US08953944B2
The systems and methods described herein provide a reconfigurable, long-range, optical modem-based underwater communication network. In particular, the network provides a low power, low cost, and easy to deploy underwater optical communication system capable of being operated at long distances. Optical modem-based communication offer high data rate, omni-directional spatial communication in the visual spectrum. The omni-directional aspect of communication is advantageous because precise alignment of communication units may not be required. The optical modems may be deployed via unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) and physically connected by tethers.
US08953943B2
A method (100) of operation in a passive optical network system (600) includes transmitting wave division multiplexed data in a downstream link (617) of an optical distribution network (618) using a plurality of optical line terminals (601,602,603). Each optical line terminal (601,602,603) operates at a unique wavelength, and is synchronized to each other optical line terminal by a common reference (643). Upstream data is received from an upstream link (619) of the optical distribution network on a shared common upstream wavelength (620).
US08953940B2
A method for time synchronization on a passive optical network is disclosed, including: an optical line terminal (OLT) receives clock information sent by a first optical network unit (ONU); the OLT adjusts local time of the OLT according to the clock information, to implement clock synchronization between the OLT and the first ONU; the OLT sends the clock information to a second ONU, to implement clock synchronization between the second ONU and the OLT. The OLT in an embodiment of the present invention does not need to obtain clock signals from an upper network and the clock information does not need to be transmitted in a multi-level mode over a packet network; therefore, the precision of ToD can be greatly increased.
US08953939B2
Disclosed are universal QPSK transmitter structures and methods for generating different QPSK signals exhibiting different polarization schemes, namely PolMux, PolMod and PolSw. The bit rate of the generated signals is variable, thereby allowing the transmitter to adjust to varying network traffic conditions. Advantageously, the generated signals may be detected by analog receivers (PolSw-QPSK) and coherent receivers (PolMux-QPSK, PolMod-QPSK, and PolSw-QPSK).
US08953938B2
A communication network is configured to implement time scale separated management and provisioning optimizations, for example, in a core optical network coupled to multiple data networks. Network management optimizations are performed at respective points in time separated by intervals of a first time scale, and network provisioning optimizations are performed at respective points in time separated by intervals of a second time scale, with the intervals of the second time scale being on average substantially longer than the intervals of the first time scale. Moreover, at least a given one of the intervals of the second time scale has a length which is determined based on results of performance of one or more of the network management optimizations. The core optical network may be configured utilizing information specified by the network management and network provisioning optimizations.
US08953936B2
An Optical Line Termination (OLT) system in a multi-wavelength Passive Optical Network (PON) includes a protection port for protecting a set of OLT ports without the use of a physical switch. The protection port has a tunable transceiver. The OLT system detects a failure of one of the OLT ports, which was originally adapted to transmit downstream traffic to a subset of ONUs on a downstream wavelength and to receive upstream traffic from the subset of ONUs on an upstream wavelength. In response to the detection, the OLT system tunes the protection port to the downstream wavelength for transmission and to the upstream wavelength for reception, and resumes communication between the OLT system and the subset of ONUs through the protection port instead of the OLT port.
US08953932B2
Disclosed is an apparatus for altering the temperature of a liquid, comprising: a pipe having a first end for receiving a liquid and a second end for discharging the liquid; and a thermal element for altering the temperature of the liquid, wherein the thermal element is located in the pipe such that the volume available for the liquid within the pipe is in the range 0 to 20% of the pipe volume.
US08953929B2
A video recording camera system provide remote control functionality through a wireless handset interface. In embodiments, a video recording camera includes an optical sensor, a processor coupled to the optical sensor to process an input image signal received from the optical sensor into an encoded video data stream, a non-volatile storage medium coupled to the processor to store, locally in the video recording camera, encoded video data stream as recorded video data, and a wireless transceiver. In embodiments, a cellular-enabled wireless communication handset communicatively couples to the video recording camera over a wireless personal area network (WPAN) supported by the camera's wireless transceiver. The handset serves as a gateway to the camera providing access to recorded video data or functions of the camera, via the WPAN, as determined based on communications conducted by the handset over a cellular communication link.
US08953921B2
An adapter panel arrangement including a chassis and a panel of adapters. The adapters defining open rearward cable connections and open forward cable connections of the panel arrangement. The adapters being arranged in arrays that slide independently of other adapter arrays to provide access to the open rearward and open forward cable connections.
US08953917B2
According to some embodiments a single mode fiber includes: a germania doped central core region having outer radius r1 and relative refractive index Δ1; and a cladding region comprising (i) a first inner cladding region having an outer radius r2>6 microns and relative refractive index Δ2 and 0.3≦r1/r2≦0.85; and (ii) a second inner cladding region having an outer radius r3>9 microns and comprising a minimum relative refractive index Δ3, wherein said second inner cladding region has at least one region with a relative refractive index delta that becomes more negative with increasing radius; and (iii) an outer cladding region surrounding the second inner cladding region and comprising relative refractive index Δ4, wherein Δ1>Δ2>Δ3, Δ3<Δ4.
US08953911B1
In part, the invention relates to a single clad fiber to multi-clad optical fiber connector for use in applying excitation light to a sample and obtaining reflected light from the sample. The connector can include a dual clad optical fiber portion and a single clad optical fiber portion in optical communication with the dual clad optical fiber portion. In one embodiment, a core of the dual clad optical fiber portion and a core of the single clad optical fiber portion have substantially similar indices of refraction. In one embodiment, excitation light is propagated by the core of the dual clad optical fiber. Further, in one embodiment, light reflected by the sample is propagated by the first cladding layer of the dual clad optical fiber portion.
US08953902B2
A method for imaging an object is provided. The method includes acquiring image data of the object, wherein the image data includes a plurality of original voxels each having an original CT number, identifying, using a processing device, a subset of the original voxels based on at least one of an original CT number and a location of each original voxel, applying, using the processing device, an anisotropic smoothing filter to the identified original voxels in the subset to generate a set of smoothed voxels each having a smoothed CT number, generating, using the processing device, smoothed image data by combining the original voxels and the smoothed voxels, and analyzing the smoothed image data to determine whether the object contains contraband.
US08953898B2
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus and method configured to make it possible to improve the convenience of codestreams in which multiview images are encoded.A progression determining unit 183 determines a progressive structure for a merged codestream on the basis of analysis results for progressive structures of input codestreams 112 for respective views and externally supplied progressive structure instructions. A merging unit 184 merges the codestreams according to the determination so as to have the progressive structure. A progression information generator 185 generates progression information for the merged codestream 194, and embeds it at a given position. The present invention can be applied to an image processing apparatus, for example.
US08953897B2
A method of removing coding artifacts in first and second processed edges that are processed edges in an image signal and in different directions includes: determining, based on at least pixel values of first adjacent pixels adjacent to the first processed edge, a first target pixel from which coding artifacts are to be removed for the first processed edge (S11); removing coding artifacts from the determined first target pixel (S13); determining, based on at least pixel values of second adjacent pixels adjacent to the second processed edge, a second target pixel from which coding artifacts are to be removed for the second processed edge (S12); and removing coding artifacts from the determined second target pixel (S14), wherein at S12, the second target pixel is determined based on pixel values of the second adjacent pixels from which the coding artifacts are not removed at S13.
US08953896B2
A method and apparatus for enhancing and improving image quality are provided. The method includes separating an input image into at least one low frequency component and at least one high frequency component; modulating the low frequency components in a block unit by dithering; modulating the high frequency components by sampling; and combining the modulated low frequency components and the modulated high frequency components.
US08953883B2
According to one embodiment, an image processing apparatus includes a detail extraction module, a detail addition control module, and a detail component addition module. The detail extraction module extracts a detail component from an image signal of one frame. The detail addition control module controls an addition quantity of a detail component. The detail component addition module adds a detail component controlled by the detail addition control module to the image signal.
US08953876B2
Techniques for accurate color representation of images stored within a social networking system. In an embodiment, an error metric and a target error threshold are determined. A binary search algorithm and a simulated annealing algorithm are performed. A color profile for transforming an image in a first color space to a second color space is created based on the binary search algorithm, the simulated annealing algorithm, the error metric, and the target error threshold. Determination of the error metric may comprise determining a frequency with which a color occurs in the image, assigning a weight to the color based on the frequency, and calculating the error metric based on the weight. Determination of the error metric may comprise dividing the image into a plurality of sections, assigning a plurality of importance values to the plurality of sections, and calculating the error metric based on the plurality of importance values.
US08953855B2
An object of the present invention is to provide an edge detection technique and equipment which are capable of stably detecting an edge by suppressing the influence of noise even in the case where the image is obtained by charged particle radiation equipment, such as a scanning electron microscope and has a low S/N ratio. More specifically, the present invention is to propose a technique and equipment which are configured to determine a peak position (edge) on the basis of the following two edge extraction techniques. That is, the present invention is to propose a technique and equipment wherein at least two peaks are formed by using, as edge detection techniques, for example, one peak detection technique having a relatively high sensitivity and the other peak detection technique which is relatively less susceptible to the influence of noise than the one peak detection technique, and wherein a position where the peaks coincide with each other is determined as a true peak position (edge position).
US08953852B2
A method for face recognition is provided with collecting a match facial image; retrieving a reference image from image records of a database or an input image; selecting one or more facial features from each of the match facial image and the reference image; obtaining at least one match facial feature and a match deviation of the reference image corresponding to the facial features of the match facial image; creating a match geometric model and a reference geometric model; obtaining a model deviation by comparing the match geometric model and the reference geometric model; and employing a match deviation and a model deviation to obtain a recognition score based on a predetermined rule. The method involves a two-way face recognition by integrating facial features of block matching with geometric model comparison. It employs relationship of match deviation and model deviation.
US08953851B2
A biometric user authentication method and computer program product includes receiving asserted user credentials from a user into a biometric authentication system, and obtaining a digitally-stored image key and ocular biometric data both associated with the asserted user credentials from memory within the biometric authentication system. The biometric authentication system is verified by simultaneously displaying the image key and at least one image other than the image key to the user and detecting that the user has selected the image key. The user is authenticated by scanning an eye of the user to obtain ocular biometric data and matching the scanned ocular biometric data to the digitally stored ocular biometric data. If the biometric system is verified and the user is authenticated, then the user is provided access to a protected area.
US08953846B2
A license plate recognition system and method recognizes a license plate attached to a vehicle and bears a license plate number. The system includes a database module, a reducing module, an image capturing unit, a sorting unit, and a recognizing module. The database module stores license plate position sample type-related data and license plate number sample type-related data whose quantity is reducible by the reducing module. The image capturing unit captures license plate images at different imaging resolutions to generate license plate position image eigenvalue and license plate number image eigenvalue. The sorting unit computes the license plate position image eigenvalue to generate license plate position type-related data and computes the license plate number image eigenvalue to generate license plate number type-related data. The recognizing module compares the license plate number type-related data with the license plate number sample type-related data, thereby recognizing the license plate number.
US08953841B1
In some examples, a user transportable device may determine, based at least in part on sensor input, that the device is in motion. For example, the device may determine there is a likelihood that a user of the device is walking, running, traveling in a vehicle, or the like. In response, the device may present, on a display, an image obtained from a camera oriented, at least in part, toward a direction of travel. Further, in some examples, one or more images from the camera and/or sensor input from other sensors on the device may be analyzed to detect whether an object, obstruction or other hazard is in a direction of travel of the user of the device. If the device determines that a hazard may be imminently encountered by the user, the device may provide an alert to the user.
US08953836B1
Systems and methods are provided herein relating to real-time duplicate detection of video content. Fingerprints can be generated for an uploaded video. The fingerprints can be used to match the uploaded video to a set of matching videos. The set of matching videos can be filtered based on the type of match, and the quality of the match. A unique cluster-id can be generated for the uploaded video containing an upload time, and that unique cluster-id can then be modified to associate the uploaded video with a cluster-id of potential duplicates. Cluster-ids can then be used in the context of a search to filter results that have identical cluster-ids. The benefits in using real-time duplicate detection can better maximize user experiences in a video sharing service that contains potential duplicates of the same content.
US08953833B2
Systems and methods for controlling airflow into an electronic device are disclosed. An airflow control system may include an airflow impedance plate having one or more airflow impeding features. The airflow impedance plate may be a passive device that may be configured to impede forceful airflow therethrough and also allow sound to pass therethrough.
US08953831B2
An acoustic horn. In one implementation, the horn includes at least four wall sections, defining a passageway. The cross-sectional area of the mouth is at least ten times the cross sectional area of the throat. The wall sections are dimensioned so that at least one wall section has a dimension at the throat at least ten times a dimension at the throat of a second wall section. In another implementation the cross-section at the mouth is elongated and is be bounded by a continuous curve defining a geometric figure having a major axis at least ten times a minor axis.
US08953827B2
A hearing aid is powered by a rechargeable battery and senses a sound signal being a magnetic field using a telecoil. The hearing aid includes a battery recharge coil for receiving power from a hearing aid charger via an inductive couple. The telecoil and the inductive coil are integrated into a single device.
US08953824B2
A display apparatus having an object-oriented 3D sound coordinate indication is disclosed, in which sounds are outputted from a speaker positioned matching with a coordinate of an object in a matrix speaker apparatus formed of a plurality of small size speakers disposed behind a display apparatus in cooperation with an object content displayed on a display apparatus screen. The display apparatus having an object-oriented 3D sound coordinate indication comprises a center channel decoder which receives an audio signal corresponding to a center channel speaker among the audio signals outputted from a decoder of the surround speaker system and separates into sound sources based on an object; a center channel matrix for setting the coordinates of sound sources based on the objects separated by the center channel decoder; a matrix amplifier for amplifying an output sound of a speaker matching with each coordinate value of the sound sources based on the object; and a plurality of speakers which are arranged in a matrix shape behind the display monitor, whereby sounds are outputted through the speakers corresponding to the coordinates of the objects displayed on the display monitor.
US08953822B2
An audio resonance vibrator includes a yoke defining a bottom and a sidewall extending vertically from the bottom, an elastic frame cooperatively with the yoke forming a housing defining a receiving space, a magnet disposed on the bottom of the yoke cooperatively with the sidewall of yoke forming a magnetic gap, a vibrating unit accommodated in the receiving space defining a vibrating plate and a coil assembly connected with the vibrating plate. The coil assembly is at least partially received in the magnetic gap, and the vibrating plate is positioned on the elastic frame. The audio resonance vibrator further includes an elastic member interposed between the magnet and the vibrating plate to support the magnet.
US08953821B2
A parametric audio system having increased bandwidth for generating airborne audio signals with reduced distortion. The parametric audio system includes a modulator for modulating an ultrasonic carrier signal with a processed audio signal, a driver amplifier for amplifying the modulated carrier signal, and an array of acoustic transducers for projecting the modulated and amplified carrier signal through the air along a selected projection path to regenerate the audio signal. The acoustic transducer array includes a backplate having a succession of depressions formed thereon with at least one varying feature and/or dimension, and a membrane disposed along the backplate. The feature and/or dimension of the respective depressions vary so that the center frequencies of the respective acoustic transducers span a desired frequency range, thereby broadening the frequency response of the acoustic transducer array.
US08953814B2
Noise reduction circuitry for a communication apparatus can apply different noise reduction transfer functions, depending on whether a listening device is connected to the apparatus. If no listening device is connected, the noise reduction transfer function can be adapted for use with microphones (12) and speakers (28) that form an integral part of the communication apparatus, which may be a cellular telephone. If a listening device is connected, the noise reduction transfer function can be adapted for use with microphones (12) and speakers (28) that form a part of the listening device. This allows the noise reduction circuitry to provide improved noise reduction performance.
US08953808B2
A system and method for effectively supporting data transfer procedures includes a source device that registers with an account server to participate in a data backup service. The source device then encrypts and stores user data onto a datacenter. The source device later may request a data transfer task from a vendor. The datacenter responsively transfers the encrypted user data to a vendor server, and an escrow server generates and sends a temporary key to the vendor server. A destination device may then utilize the temporary key to decrypt and securely store the user data onto the destination device.
US08953805B2
A secret information server 300 on a network 10 and a client apparatus 100 constitute an authentication information generating system. The secret information server 300 has a function to confirm the validity of a user in accordance with user identification information received from the client apparatus 100 and a function to hold the secret information database of each user and to send the secret information database of a user whose validity has been confirmed to the client apparatus 100 of the user. The client apparatus 100 has a main memory 120 having a domain A where an application or a main OS is executed and a domain B which has a program execution environment mutually independent of that for the domain A. The secret information database received from the secret information server 300 is saved in the domain B, and authentication information is generated by using the secret information database. Secret information required to generate the authentication information for user authentication is held securely at low cost.
US08953795B2
Providing authorized copies of encrypted media content including: receiving application for authentication to make copies of the media content; providing forensic decryption tools to process the media content; transmitting a permission to make copies of the media content using the forensic decryption tools; performing authorized decryption of the media content; and making and forensically marking copies of the decrypted media content.
US08953792B2
A method for creating a key token includes receiving a first key token, second key token and a request to combine the first key token with the second key token, identifying a key type of the first key token and a key type of the second key token, determining whether the key type of the first key token may be combined with the key type of the second key token, combining the first key token with the second key token to create a third key token responsive to determining that the key type of the first key token may be combined with the key type of the second key token, and outputting the third key token.
US08953791B2
Systems, methods, and other embodiments associated with deriving group keys used to securely communicate in a wireless mesh network are described. According to one embodiment, a controller, for calculating group keys used to secure communications to a plurality of remote devices in a network, includes a key logic configured to calculate a group key by using a group master key and unique information about a remote device of the plurality of remote devices. The plurality of remote devices are configured in a mesh topology. The group key is for securing communications with the remote device. The controller also includes a communication logic configured to secure a communication by using the group key. The communication is to be transmitted to the remote device.
US08953789B2
A system includes a processor configured to perform a method, the method comprising receiving a first key token, second key token and a request to combine the first key token with the second key token, identifying a key type of the first key token and a key type of the second key token, determining whether the key type of the first key token may be combined with the key type of the second key token, combining the first key token with the second key token to create a third key token responsive to determining that the key type of the first key token may be combined with the key type of the second key token, and outputting the third key token.
US08953783B2
According to an embodiment, an arithmetic device includes an arithmetic processing unit, an address generating unit, and a control unit. The arithmetic processing unit performs a plurality of arithmetic processing used in an encryption method. Based on an upper bit of the address of the first piece of data and based on an offset which is a value corresponding to a counter value and which is based on the address of the first piece of data, the address generating unit generates addresses of the memory device. The control unit controls the arithmetic processing unit in such a way that the arithmetic processing is done in a sequence determined in the encryption method, and that specifies an update of the counter value at a timing of modifying the type of data and at a timing of modifying data.
US08953782B2
A method of sending or marshaling data from a device through a cryptographic unit in a software communications architecture (SCA), includes identifying an endian mode of the cryptographic unit, and determining if the data to be sent from the device has an endian mode that matches the endian mode of the cryptographic unit. If the endian modes match, the data is enabled to be sent through the cryptographic unit. If the endian modes do not match, the endian mode of the data is flipped and then the data is then enabled to be sent through the cryptographic unit.
US08953773B2
A contact center is described along with various methods and mechanisms for administering the same. In general, methods and mechanisms are disclosed that are configured to provide interactive voice response (IVR) functionality as one or more distributed resources capable of being assigned work items via a work assignment engine. Assigning work items may be performed via the work assignment engine running an IVR script. This IVR script may be configured to determine information associated with a work item such that an efficient work assignment can be made. In some cases, business rules and the information associated with the work item can affect the work assignment.
US08953756B2
Methods and arrangements to check for permission to record Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) messages and to respond to requests for permission are contemplated. Embodiments include transformations, code, state machines or other logic to check for permission to record VoIP messages and to respond to requests by transmitting an inquiry on permission to record a VoIP message of a participant in a VoIP call session comprising the VoIP message, receiving a response to the inquiry, determining by a processor whether the response to the inquiry grants permission to record the VoIP message, and recording the VoIP message based upon the response to the inquiry granting permission to record the VoIP message. Some embodiments may involve querying a participant in a VoIP call session comprising a VoIP message for permission to record the VoIP message through a user interface mechanism for checking for permission to record VoIP messages.
US08953754B1
An automated calling system authenticates and subsequently communicates via a telephone network with a person such as a current or prospective customer. The communication may be in regards to an account having an adverse account status (e.g. a payment delinquency, an overdrawn checking account, being over the credit limit on a credit card, excessive transactions on one account, suspicious or fraudulent transactions on an account, and so on).
US08953743B2
A sample (1) is irradiated with X-rays at different incident angles from plural X-ray sources (21, 22). Attention is focused on a Debye-ring of each X-ray diffraction emitted conically from the sample in association with incident X-ray from each of the X-ray sources (21, 22), and stress in the sample (1) is determined on the basis of information of X-ray diffraction appearing at an intersection point between the Debye-ring of the X-ray diffraction recorded on an image plate (30) and an equatorial plane (H) and information of X-ray diffraction appearing in the neighborhood of the intersection point between the Debye-ring and the equatorial plane (H).
US08953737B2
Disclosed herein is a shift register in which leakage of charges from a voltage at a set node is prevented to stabilize an output from a stage. The shift register includes a plurality of stages for sequentially outputting scan pulses. Each stage includes a node controller for controlling signal states of a set node and a reset node, and an output unit supplied with any one of a plurality of clock pulses having different phases. The output unit outputs the supplied clock pulse as a scan pulse through an output terminal thereof according to the signal states of the set node and reset node. The node controller includes a first discharging switching device which is turned on or off in response to a scan pulse from a downstream stage. The first discharging switching device is connected between any one of a plurality of clock transfer lines and the set node.
US08953735B2
A U-tube steam generator having a dual system for collecting loose parts and sludge. A loose parts collector having a water overflow edge is disposed between a feedwater inlet and a tube bundle of the steam generator. A sludge collector having a water outlet that is disposed downstream of the overflow edge of the loose parts collector and maintains a pressure differential between a water inlet of the sludge collector and the water outlet.
US08953734B2
The transition unit includes an outer cylinder that is cylindrically shaped and made of steel. A foundation for supporting the outer cylinder is provided. The foundation contains no metal reinforcements. Grounding rods are connected to the outer cylinder. The grounding rods extend to a water table. A lower support structure made preferably of wood is located within the outer cylinder. An inner cylinder is supported by the lower support structure. A canister is located within the inner cylinder. A cover is located on the outer cylinder for enclosing the transition unit.
US08953727B2
An apparatus and a method for detecting signals are provided. The method for detecting signals in a receiving end having a plurality of antenna in wireless communication system includes performing Minimum Mean Square Error (MMSE) estimation for a transmitted symbol vector, determining a covariance matrix for the MMSE estimation, determining a triangular matrix based on the covariance matrix, and determining accumulated metrics for each symbol vector candidate based on the triangular matrix.
US08953724B2
Canceling narrowband interfering signals in a distributed antenna system is provided. In one aspect, a cancellation sub-system includes a decimator module, a filter, an interpolator module, and a combiner module coupled to the uplink path and a reference path in parallel with the uplink path. The reference path includes the decimator module, the filter, and the interpolator module. The decimator module decimates a reference signal sampled from an uplink signal traversing an uplink path of the remote antenna unit. Each of the uplink signal and the reference signal includes a narrowband interfering signal component. The filter generates a cancellation signal from the reference signal by attenuating the reference signal outside a frequency band that includes the interfering signal component. The interpolator module interpolates the cancellation signal to a sampling rate of the uplink signal. The combiner module can subtract the cancellation signal from the uplink signal.
US08953723B2
A receiver is configured for canceling intra-cell and inter-cell interference in coded, multiple-access, spread-spectrum transmissions that propagate through frequency-selective communication channels. The receiver employs iterative symbol-estimate weighting, subtractive cancellation with a stabilizing step-size, and mixed-decision symbol estimate. Receiver embodiments may be implemented explicitly in software of programmed hardware, or implicitly in standard Rake-based hardware either within the Rake (i.e., at the finger level) or outside the Rake (i.e., at the user of subchannel symbol level).
US08953720B1
In a method for detecting a packet type of an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) data unit detected in a communication channel, a first estimate and a second estimate of a transmitted symbol are determined for each of at least some of a plurality of OFDM tones in an OFDM symbol of the data unit. A first distance and a second distance are determined between a received symbol and, respectively, the first estimate and the second estimate scaled by a channel response estimate corresponding to the OFDM tone. A first total distance is determined based on a mathematical summation of the first distances over the plurality of OFDM tones. A second total distance is determined based on a mathematical summation of the second distances over the plurality of OFDM tones. The packet type is determined based at least on the first total distance and the second total distance.
US08953717B2
A method includes: demodulating a signal transmitted by a first source end that is received to obtain a first log-likelihood ratio; demodulating a signal transmitted by a second source end that is received to obtain a second log-likelihood ratio; demodulating a signal transmitted by a relay node that is received to obtain a third log-likelihood ratio; based on an exclusive OR feature of network coding, processing the first log-likelihood ratio, the second log-likelihood ratio, and the third log-likelihood ratio to obtain a posterior log-likelihood ratio of the first source end; and decoding the signal transmitted by the first source end that is received by using the posterior log-likelihood ratio of the first source end.
US08953713B2
Methods and apparatuses are provided for uplink MIMO transmissions in a wireless communication system. In particular, a primary stream (610) may be utilized to carry a primary data channel E-DPDCH (624), and a secondary stream (612) may be utilized to carry a secondary data channel S-E-DPDCH (620). Further, the primary stream (610) may be precoded utilizing a primary precoding vector, and the secondary stream (612) may be precoded utilizing a secondary precoding vector, with coefficients orthogonal to those of the primary precoding vector. The primary stream may include an enhanced control channel E-DPCCH (614) adapted to carry control information associated with both the primary data channel E-DPDCH (624) and the secondary data channel S-E-DPDCH (620).
US08953710B2
The modulator creates modulated signals from input signals. The series/parallel converter creates subcarrier modulated signals from the remaining data and modulated signals. The arithmetic operator arranges and combines a first number of elements of the subcarrier modulated signals from the first one and a second number of elements of a data series from the first one each multiplied by a given amplitude coefficient to create arithmetic operation data. The IFFT executor executes the inverse fast Fourier transformation of the arithmetic operation data. The combiner creates baseband signals from the arithmetic operation results. The determiner calculates the peal-to-average power ratio of the baseband signals. The processing of the arithmetic operator to the determiner is repeated while changing at least one of given numbers until the baseband signals complying with a given criterion are detected. The transmitter creates transmission signals from the baseband signals and transmits the transmission signals via an antenna.
US08953707B2
A code word selection method performed by a User Equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system is provided. The method includes generating a rotation matrix using previously selected codeword; generating a new differential code book using the rotation matrix and a differential code book; selecting a code word from the new differential code book; and performing data transmission using the selected code word.
US08953702B2
A process selects a Precoding Matrix Index (PMI) in a Multiple In Multiple Out (MIMO) receiver used in a wireless communications system including a base station communicating with User Equipments (UE) through a downlink and uplink channel. The base station applies a precoding on the transmit symbol vector based on a matrix selected from a set of predefined matrices and identified by a PMI index computed by the UE and forwarded to the base station via the uplink. The process includes estimating the MIMO channel matrix H of a given set of resources blocks comprising received symbol vectors, estimating the variance σ2 of the additive noise (AWGN), and computing for each particular matrix comprised within the set of predefined matrices a cost function representative of the orthogonality of the matrix MIMO channel matrix H. The process further includes comparing the values of the cost function and transmitting to the base station the index corresponding to the matrix corresponding to the best conditioned MIMO channel matrix according to the comparison of the values.
US08953682B2
Disclosed is a method of encoding a video, the method including: splitting a current picture into at least one maximum coding unit; determining a coded depth to output a final encoding result according to at least one split region obtained by splitting a region of the maximum coding unit according to depths, by encoding the at least one split region, based on a depth that deepens in proportion to the number of times the region of the maximum coding unit is split; and outputting image data constituting the final encoding result according to the at least one split region, and encoding information about the coded depth and a prediction mode, according to the at least one maximum coding unit.
US08953679B2
Methods and apparatus are provided for implicit block segmentation in video encoding and decoding. An apparatus includes an encoder for encoding at least a portion of a picture using a block segmentation process performed on a pixel difference of at least two predictors for the portion. The encoder implicitly signals block segmentation information for use by a decoder to decode the portion.
US08953676B2
An information processing apparatus that generates images for displaying a computer execution result on a display unit of a terminal device connected through a network and that transmits the images to the terminal device. The apparatus includes an image memory that holds the images; a first transmitting unit that transmits the images, a detecting unit that detects an area obtained by updating accumulated changes between frames of the images or a frequency of changes between frames of the images, and a second transmitting unit that compresses the images by a compression method and that transmits the compressed images, when the area or the frequency detected by the detecting unit is larger than or equal to a predetermined threshold, the compression method being different from a compression method for the first transmitting unit.
US08953667B2
A method of operation of a communication system includes: calculating a shift distance of a received signal having a distortion; calculating an approximate likelihood of the received signal matching a transmitted signal from the shift distance; determining a bias factor from the distortion; and selecting a determined modulation maximizing a combination of the approximate likelihood and the bias factor for communicating with a device.
US08953666B2
A control device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure controls communications between a plurality of information terminals at a first site and an information device at a second site. The control device includes: an interface that obtains class information indicating what class is allocated to each of those information terminals and also obtains rate information indicating a rate of communication with the information device over a network; and a control section that puts an upper limit on the communication rate of each of the information terminals by reference to the class information and the rate information and notifies the information terminal of the upper limit.
US08953662B1
Aspects of the disclosure provide a method. The method includes capturing values of a timer in response to a first transition edge and a second transition edge of a received signal transmitted from an external device to determine a counted number by the timer corresponding to a pre-known number of symbols between the first and second transition edges in the received signal, and determining a baud rate configuration based on a ratio of the counted number and the pre-known number of symbols.
US08953657B2
There are several exemplary ways to more efficiently communicate an out-of-domain seed to a receiver—in a first technique, the seed can be indicated in the header portion or data portion of a packet. For example, the header portion of the packet could contain one or more bit fields that indicate the value of the LFSR seed used for the preamble portion of the packet. The receiver would learn the out-of-domain seed after receiving a first out-of-domain packet and decoding the header portion of that packet. After learning the out-of-domain seed, the receiver could send a packet indicating the value of the out-of-domain seed to the local master. The local master could then transmit the value of the out-of-domain seed in the header portion or data portion of a local MAP frame.
US08953655B2
A laser diode (LD) driver to suppress the excess emission of an LD is disclosed. The LD driver has the shunt configuration with a driving transistor connected in parallel to the LD to shunt the bias current provided to the LD. The driver further provides a protection circuit to divide the bias current when the bias current is active but the driving transistor is turned off at an instant of the power on and off of the LD driver.
US08953637B1
A networking device includes a media access controller, a first rate adaptation layer communicating with the media access controller, a first physical extension module communicating with the first rate adaptation layer, a second physical extension module communicating with the first physical extension module, a second rate adaptation layer communicating with the second physical extension module, and a physical layer device communicating with the second rate adaptation layer. The physical layer device communicates with the second rate adaptation layer using an extended 10 Gbps media independent interface (EXGMII). The EXGMII includes a plurality of signal interconnections, a first mapping of signals of a media independent interface (MII) to the signal interconnections, a second mapping of signals of a 1 Gbps MII (GMII) to the signal interconnections, and a third mapping of signals of a 10 Gbps MII (XGMII) to the signal interconnections.
US08953627B2
A server-client system or architecture that allows datacast applications to reliably transport data objects from a network server over a unidirectional packet network (“datacast network”) to one or more clients, each of which may be listening to the packet stream at different times. The invention allows the clients to listen intermittently to the datacast, yet still receive all of the data objects published by the server in a timely manner, and in a way that is more optimal in terms of client resource use. This ensures that listening clients can receive a complete set of the data objects broadcast while being able to conserve client processing and power resources by not requiring continuous listening by the client to the datacast.
US08953626B2
A router maintains routing information including (i) route data representing destinations within a computer network, (ii) next hop data representing interfaces to neighboring network devices, and (iii) indirect next hop data that maps a subset of the routes represented by the route data to a common one of the next hop data elements. In this manner, routing information is structured such that routes having the same next hop use indirect next hop data structures to reference common next hop data. In particular, in response to a change in network topology, the router need not change all of the affected routes, but only the common next hop data referenced by the intermediate data structures. This provides for increased efficiency in updating routing information after a change in network topology, such as link failure.
US08953603B2
A method of sending data to a switch fabric includes assigning a destination port of an output module to a data packet based on at least one field in a first header of the data packet. A module associated with a first stage of the switch fabric is selected based on at least one field in the first header. A second header is appended to the data packet. The second header includes an identifier associated with the destination port of the output module. The data packet is sent to the module associated with the first stage. The module associated with the first stage is configured to send the data packet to a module associated with a second stage of the switch fabric based on the second header.
US08953580B2
Provided is a method of processing and transmitting transport stream packets and processing the transmitted transport stream packets. A time stamp is generated in a medium access control (MAC) layer based on time information managed by the MAC layer, and a data frame including the transport stream packets is retransmitted based on an algorithm different from that used for a general data frame when a transmission error occurs. Therefore, there is no need to transmit and receive additional synchronization packets in order to precisely transmit the transport stream packets between transmitting and receiving terminals, and it is possible to reduce performance deterioration caused by latency and jitter.
US08953576B2
Explicit discard indications are used that allows a radio network controller (105), when operating in a multi-point High Speed Downlink Packet Access, HSDPA, scenario, to send data to a user equipment (106) via plural radio base stations (104) while reducing the risk for unnecessary duplicate data to be sent over the Uu interface between the radio base stations and the user equipment.
US08953571B2
Techniques are described for capturing text (e.g., SMS) messages and multimedia (e.g. MMS) messages along with messages and data sent with other communication modalities. The captured information may be used for performing social networking-related, data processing and auditing operations in real-time.
US08953561B2
A mobile communication method is discussed involving causing Mobile Switching Center (MSC) server/Circuit Switch-Media Gateway (CS-MGW) to transmit a path switching signal and activate a timer, causing User Equipment (UE) #2 to switch a transmission destination of a voice communication data signal addressed to UE#1 from Serving/Packet Data Network Gateway (S/P-GW) to the MSC server/CS-MGW, causing the MSC server/CS-MGW transmits a path restoration instruction signal if not detecting that handover of the UE#1 from Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) to UTRAN/GSM and EDGE Radio Access Network (GERAN) is completed before the timer expires, and causing the UE#2 to switch a transmission destination of the voice communication data signal addressed to the UE#1 from the MSC server/CS-MGW to the S/P-GW in response to the path restoration instruction signal.
US08953556B2
A method of transmitting CountingResponse message for a mobile device in a wireless communication system is disclosed. The method comprises steps of receiving a CountingRequest message from a network; activating security between the mobile device and a network in the wireless communication system; and transmitting a CountingResponse message to the network.
US08953551B2
A wireless communication system includes a setting unit for setting a number of resource block groups, each of the resource block groups including consecutive resource blocks on a frequency axis, and an allocating unit for allocating the resource blocks for an uplink channel such that the allocated resource blocks are not contiguous.
US08953549B1
A radio access network (RAN) may receive a call setup request from a wireless communication device (WCD). The call setup request may indicate that the WCD supports a first media codec. The RAN may obtain a set of candidate wireless coverage areas for serving the WCD. A first subset of the candidate wireless coverage areas may support the first media codec, and a second subset of the candidate wireless coverage areas might not support the first media codec. The RAN may assign traffic channels to the WCD, such that the assigned traffic channels include traffic channels from at least two of the first subset of the candidate wireless coverage areas, but do not include traffic channels from any of the second subset of the candidate wireless coverage areas. The RAN may communicate with the WCD substantially simultaneously via the assigned traffic channels using the first media codec.
US08953545B2
This invention relates with a method for detecting a downlink control structure for carrier aggregation in communication network in which data transmission is scheduled by a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). An UE receives higher layer signaling enabling carrier aggregation for the UE. The UE reads the PDCCHs of component carriers (CCs), wherein the downlink control information (DCI) in the PDCCHs of each CC is read according to one of a plurality of predefined formats derived from the higher layer signaling.
US08953542B2
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for receiving multi-band information in a WLAN system. The method for receiving multi-band information by a first station (STA), operating as an unlicensed device, within an available channel which is not used by a licensed device in a white space band of a WLAN system according to one aspect of the present invention comprises: allowing the first station to receive, from a second station, information about a first band and a second band through the first band that is currently being communicated with the first and second stations; and allowing the first station to communication with the second station through the second band, wherein the first station and the second station are multi-band stations that support the first band and the second band.
US08953525B2
The present description relates to a method in which a terminal in an idle mode performs network reentry in a wireless access system, wherein the method comprises: a step of receiving, from a base station, control information containing a first parameter and a second parameter for determining a frame in which uplink ranging is to be performed; and a step of performing uplink ranging for network reentry with the base station on the basis of the control information, wherein the first parameter indicates the location of a superframe in which uplink ranging is to be performed, and the second parameter indicates the frame duration in the superframe which is indicated by the first parameter and in which uplink ranging is performed.
US08953521B1
The invention is directed to methods for facilitating communication between multiple wireless access components. Initially, a second wireless access component is detected to be within range of a first wireless access component. It is determined that a wireless connection is to be established between the wireless access components. Access information is exchanged between the wireless access components indicating capacity and current usage of each other's outbound link to the Internet. A wireless connection is then established between the two wireless access components, thus allowing for routing of Internet traffic between the wireless access components.
US08953518B2
A method and an apparatus for acquiring initial synchronization in a wireless communication system are provided. A relay station determines whether or not the initial synchronization is acquired, determines a start position of a frame using a peak of an autocorrelation signal detected based on a preamble and a relay-amble (R-amble) received from a base station in the case in which the initial synchronization is not acquired, and determines the start position of the frame using a peak of an autocorrelation signal detected based on the relay-amble received from the base station in the case in which the initial synchronization is acquired.
US08953516B2
One or more repeaters enable the conveyance of both asynchronous and synchronous transmissions. This can comprise receiving, via a first carrier, a transmission from a message source that is asynchronous with respect to a time slot partitioning of the communication protocol and then, when the asynchronous transmission is received during an asynchronous source transmission portion, buffering a corresponding message until a next available synchronous time slot opportunity during the asynchronous source transmission portion and then transmitting the message via the first carrier to at least attempt to forward the message.
US08953509B2
A method for controlling a discontinuous reception (DRX) in a mobile communication device is provided. According to the method, when a specific application is selected, the device activates a DRX setting timer having a long DRX period for a direct long DRX mode, and enters into the DRX mode. When the setting timer expires in the DRX mode, the device activates the setting timer again and receives control information from a base station in an on-duration zone. The device enters into the DRX mode in response to no reception of valid control information in the on-duration zone, or enters into a continuous mode for executing the specific application in response to reception of valid control information.
US08953488B2
A method and apparatus for providing a topology for interconnection of telecommunication nodes in a communication network are disclosed. For example, the method obtains input data, and determines values of: at least one set, at least one parameter, and at least one variable associated with the communication network in accordance with the input data. The method then determines the topology for the interconnection via microwave links of the telecommunication nodes from an objective function in accordance with the at least one set, at least one parameter, and at least one variable, wherein the objective function is based on a plurality of penalty factors.
US08953486B2
A method involves receiving information identifying one or more virtual connections (VCs) available within a network and one or more IP subnets. The information is received by the first of several nodes coupled by the network and identifies either (or both) a first VC that is not locally available at the first node and a first IP subnet that is not configured on the first node. Information identifying a global topology of the network is generated, based upon the received information. The global topology includes each of several active VCs within the network and each of several IP subnets configured on the nodes coupled by the network. One of the IP subnets is then assigned to the one of the VCs, based upon the global topology of the network, until all of the IP subnets are assigned, each to a unique VC.
US08953482B2
Methods and devices for optimizing on-time throughput in a wireless network. An enhanced node B (eNodeB) integrating two or more air interfaces schedules transmissions, for a measurement period, over at least one of the two or more air interfaces. The eNodeB estimates, based on the transmissions, a metric of on-time throughput for the user equipment (UE) within the cell, where on-time throughput is a measure of an amount of data that arrives at a destination before a delay threshold has been reached and at a bit-rate greater than or equal to a target bit-rate. The eNodeB then assigns UEs within the cell to an air interface of the two or more air interface to maximize the metric of on-time throughput for the UEs within the cell.
US08953480B2
Method and arrangement in a network entity for supporting link adaptation in a wireless communication system. The method comprises obtaining 204 one or more predicted parameters related to the quality of a radio link. The method further comprises measuring 206 one or more actual parameters, corresponding to the one or more predicted parameters. The method further comprises deriving 208 one or more error distributions based on the difference between the predicted and actual one or more parameters, from which error distributions a link adaptation margin estimate is derived, based on a predetermined radio link quality target. The link adaptation margin estimate is then used for supporting link adaptation for the radio link.
US08953465B2
A network device may include a first set of components and a second set of components. The first set of components may manage, using a first set of parameters, at least one of uplink radio resources or downlink radio resources for a group of mobile user equipment. The second set of components may manage, using a second set of parameters, at least one of uplink radio resources or downlink radio resources for a group of fixed user equipment. The second set of parameters may be different than the first set of parameters.
US08953464B2
A method for interference cancellation in a device that receives transmissions from multiple sources is disclosed. The method includes receiving multiple slots, each including a pilot segment and a traffic segment. A first one of the slots includes information indicating an activity level of a traffic segment of the first one of the slots. The method also includes calculating a value associated with interference among the plurality of slots, utilizing the information indicating the activity level to account for an amount of interference attributable to the first one of the slots. Furthermore, channel conditions are estimated for a second one of the slots using the value associated with the amount of interference. The method also includes processing the second one of the slots according to the estimated channel conditions.
US08953462B2
A switch fabric for a modular router may be tested without connecting the switch fabric portion of the router to the other modular portions of the router. The switch fabric may generate test data units and insert the test data units into one or more elements of the switch fabric. The switch fabric may operate with the inserted test data units. A control component may receive data units from the switch fabric after operation of the switch fabric and analyze the received data units to determine whether the received data units correspond to the inserted test data units.
US08953461B2
A method, device, and system for processing Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) route are provided, which relate to the field of network communication technologies. The method includes: receiving a BGP route sent by a BGP neighbor; obtaining a route prefix of the BGP route according to the BGP route; determining, according to the route prefix, a BGP route storing and processing module corresponding to the route prefix; and sending the BGP route to the determined BGP route storing and processing module, so that the BGP route storing and processing module processes the received BGP route. A device and a system for processing BGP route are also provided. Therefore, the processing efficiency of the BGP route is improved, and the high extensibility is realized.
US08953459B2
The disclosure claims a method and system for reporting a buffer size index; the method includes: presetting a first table which is a buffer size index table used by a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, and presetting a second table which is a buffer size index table by increasing a maximum buffer size value to Bmax-A and increasing a minimum buffer size value to Bmin-A based on the first table, or by increasing a maximum buffer size value to Bmax-A, and increasing a number of the buffer size index to NLTE-A; choosing, by a User Equipment (UE) in reporting a Buffer State Report (BSR), to inquire on the preset first table or second table for the buffer size index; and sending, by the UE, the inquired buffer size index to a base station in the BSR. By adopting the method and system according to the disclosure, the scheduling efficiency in carrier aggregation is improved effectively and reasonable resource allocation is ensured.
US08953456B2
Maintenance entities may be defined between customer and provider flow points to allow performance management to take place on an Ethernet network. The maintenance entities may be defined for access link, intra-domain, and inter-domain, and may be defined on a link or service basis. The maintenance entities may be used to monitor performance within a network or across networks, and may be used to monitor various performance parameters, such as frame loss, frame delay, frame delay variation, availability, errored frame seconds, service status, frame throughput, the number of frames transmitted, received or dropped, the status of a loopback interface, the amount of time a service has been unavailable, and many other parameters. Several management mechanisms may be used, and the measurements may be collected using a solicited collection method, in which a response is required and collected, or an unsolicited collection method in which a response is not required.
US08953455B2
A method of establishing a communication session between an access terminal and an access network is disclosed. The access terminal and access network may be femtocells based on the EVDO communication standard. The example method of communication may include transmitting a connection request from the access terminal to the access network, and receiving a redirect message or a traffic channel assignment message at the access terminal based on a communication between the access network and at least one other access network. More than one access network may be present communicating as a communication pair system aimed at load balancing access terminals. The method may also include establishing packet data communications between the access terminal and a packet data serving node to provide network communication to the access terminal.
US08953452B2
Content is received within a network by a content receiver based upon fetch requests by the content receiver to a content source, where the fetch requests for content are based upon a first adaptation logic scheme to fill a buffer of the content receiver at a selected rate and to download segments of content at selected encoding rates. A network priority is detected at the content receiver that includes an observed download rate at the content receiver that is greater than a fair share rate for other content receivers in the network. Fetch requests for content are revised in response to detection of the network priority, where the revised fetch requests are based upon a priority adaptation scheme that results in at least one of filling the buffer at a faster rate and downloading segments of content at higher encoding rates compared with the first adaptation logic scheme.
US08953448B2
A system and method is described for formulating a linked-list hybrid peer-to-peer sub-network that analyzes capabilities of plurality of nodes, and creating at least two linked-list hybrid peer-to-peer sub-networks by forming a first group of nodes of the plurality of nodes having similar capabilities and establishing serial connections between nodes of the first group of nodes to form a first linked-list hybrid peer-to-peer sub-network.
US08953432B2
A dynamic binding protocol has three tasks that run in parallel: discovery, association, and operation. During discovery, control elements (CEs) and forwarding elements (FEs) learn about immediate neighbors and CEs in a SoftRouter network that has separate control and data planes. During association, FEs associate with CEs and are configured with basic parameters, such as IP interface addresses, hostnames, and the like. During operation, failover and packet tunneling between CEs and FEs is handled.
US08953420B1
Light is guided from a light source into a waveguide coupler embedded in a slider. The light source is capable of being positioned in a cross-track, a down-track, and a vertical direction with regards to the waveguide coupler. The light emanating from an air-bearing surface of the slider is imaged using a device that generates an optical image of the air-bearing surface. A cross-track alignment position is identified as a location at which the image shows substantially the same number of photons on each side of the cross-track alignment position and has a minimum spread. A down-track alignment position is identified at which the light emanating from the air-bearing surface has maximal intensity in a down-track direction.
US08953417B2
An electronic timepiece movement including a timepiece motor formed by an assembly comprising a frame made of non-magnetic material and a rotor housed in said frame; and method of manufacturing a motor of this type wherein the frame is first made with a lateral aperture, said frame including a first part and a second part each carrying a bearing, the first part or the first and second parts of the frame being elastically deformable. Next, the rotor is mounted in the frame through the lateral aperture therein by increasing the distance between the two bearings of the frame via the elastic deformation of the first part or of the first and second parts of said frame, said elastic deformation being provided in particular for the insertion of the two rotor pivots into the two respective bearings of the pre-formed frame.
US08953407B2
A sub word line driver and a semiconductor integrated circuit device having the same are provided. The semiconductor integrated circuit device includes adjacent four sub word line drivers configured to drive four sub word lines in response to signals of four main word lines, wherein first and second sub word line drivers of adjacent sub word line drivers share one keeper transistor with each other, and third and fourth sub word line drivers of the adjacent sub word line drivers share one keeper transistor with each other.
US08953404B2
A semiconductor device has an electrical fuse element including: a first filament; a second filament connected to the first filament; and a series readout section connected to an end of the first filament opposite to another end of the first filament connected to the second filament, the series readout section reading series resistance of the first filament and the second filament.
US08953400B2
The data control circuit includes an input/output line and a driver. The input/output line precharging circuit precharges a global input/output line to a predetermined voltage when either a reading operation or a writing operation is inoperative. The driver includes a number of MOS transistors and drives the global input/output line in response to receiving data from a local input/output line and a complementary local input/output line during the reading operation.
US08953396B2
A NAND interface having a reduced pin count configuration, in which all command and address functions and operations of the NAND are provided serially on a single serial command and address pin, and data is transmitted over data pins in response to commands and addresses received on the serial command and address pin.
US08953392B2
A latency control device and a semiconductor device including the same are disclosed. The latency control device includes: a code setting unit configured to output a plurality of coding signals by setting a code value having a specific delay amount in response to a code signal; a latch unit configured to latch a command signal for a predetermined time; a period control unit configured to control a delay amount of a period signal in response to an output signal of the latch unit; a selection unit configured to output an oscillation signal synchronized with the clock signal in response to the selection signal, or synchronize the oscillation signal with an output signal of the period control unit; a register unit configured to output a plurality of period signals by dividing the oscillation signal; and a comparator configured to compare the plurality of coding signals with the plurality of period signals so as to output the self-latency signal.
US08953385B2
A non-volatile memory device is provided. The non-volatile memory device includes a cell string including a plurality of non-volatile memory cells; and an operation control block configured to supply a program voltage to a word line connected to a selected non-volatile memory cell among the plurality of non-volatile memory cells during a program operation, configured to supply a first negative voltage to the word line during a detrapping operation, and configured to supply a second negative voltage as a verify voltage to the word line during a program verify operation.
US08953382B2
Integrated circuit memory devices include a plurality of vertically-stacked strings of nonvolatile memory cells having respective vertically-arranged channel regions therein electrically coupled to an underlying substrate. A control circuit is provided, which is configured to drive the vertical channel regions with an erase voltage that is ramped from a first voltage level to a higher second voltage level during an erase time interval. This ramping of the erase voltage promotes time efficient erasure of vertically stacked nonvolatile memory cells with reduced susceptibility to inadvertent programming of ground and string selection transistors (GST, SST).
US08953376B2
According to example embodiments, a read method of a nonvolatile memory device includes Disclosed is a read method of a nonvolatile memory device which includes selecting one of a plurality of vertical strings in a nonvolatile memory device, judging a channel length between a common source line and a selected one of the plurality of vertical strings, selecting a sensing manner corresponding to the judged channel length, and performing a sensing operation according to the selected sensing manner. The plurality of vertical strings may extend in a direction perpendicular to a substrate of the nonvolatile memory device.
US08953373B1
Upon a read error, a flash memory controller adjusts a candidate reference voltage on successive read retries until either a read error no longer occurs or an optimal reference voltage is attained. Optimal reference voltages correspond to cross-points of flash memory cell voltage distributions. Cross-points can be determined by using different candidate reference voltages to read data from the memory and determining corresponding decision patterns. The frequency of occurrence of the decision patterns in the data read from the memory is used to conceptually construct a histogram. The histogram is used to estimate when a candidate reference voltage has been adjusted to a cross-point.
US08953365B2
Embodiments of the disclosure provide a method for backing up data in an SRAM device, and an SRAM device that includes a capacitive backup circuit for backing up data in an SRAM device. The method may include writing data to the SRAM cell by applying an input voltage to set an input node of cross-coupled inverters to a memory state. The method may also include backing up the data written to the SRAM cell by electrically coupling the input node to the capacitive backup circuit. The method may also include restoring the data stored in the capacitive backup circuit to the SRAM cell by electrically coupling the capacitive backup circuit to the input node.
US08953360B2
An apparatus and a method for reading a phase-change memory cell are described. A circuit includes a current ramp circuit. A current forcing module is coupled with the current ramp circuit. A Veb emulation circuit is coupled with the current forcing module by a voltage adder, the voltage adder to sum an output from the Veb emulation circuit and a high impedance voltage source. A method includes forcing a current ramp into both a bitline and a dummy bitline, the dummy bitline having a voltage. The method also includes tripping a comparator when the current ramp provides a storage voltage with a predefined value, the storage voltage associated with the phase-change memory cell, and the predefined value independent from a resistance value of the phase-change memory cell and added in series to the voltage of the dummy bitline.
US08953349B2
The present invention describes systems and methods for harvesting energy from an alternating magnetic field. An exemplary embodiment can include a flux concentrator having an open core coil wherein a first current with a first voltage is induced in the flux concentrator when placed proximate an alternating magnetic field. Additionally, the system can include a transformer, having a first and second winding, connected to the flux concentrator and inducing a second current in the second winding, wherein the second current has a second voltage higher than the first voltage and a threshold voltage of a first and second diode. Furthermore, the system can include a converter, connected to the secondary winding for charging the leakage inductance of the secondary winding by creating a short circuit between the secondary winding and the converter; and the diodes connected to the secondary winding and the converter for discharging the leakage inductance.
US08953345B2
A leg includes: two semiconductor device groups connected in series and a division current is generated in a current which flows in the semiconductor device group between elements in the semiconductor device groups, a current sensor which detects a current which flows in the semiconductor device group, a voltage command generation unit which calculates a voltage command value to be outputted, a voltage drop calculating unit which calculates a voltage drop of the semiconductor device group by using a current value which is detected by the current sensor and voltage drop characteristics including a division characteristic of the semiconductor device group, and a switching control unit which corrects a voltage command value which is generated by the voltage command generation unit by using the voltage drop which is calculated so as to control ON/OFF of the switching element.
US08953341B2
A converter may include a transformer; a first circuit arrangement coupled to a first transformer side; a second circuit arrangement coupled to a second transformer side, wherein the second circuit arrangement is configured to provide an output voltage; a first coupler configured to provide information about the output voltage to the first circuit arrangement; wherein the first circuit arrangement is configured to determine a state of the secondary side based on the received information about the output voltage, and to generate a switch control signal dependent on the determined state; a switch circuit arranged on the second side; and a second coupler configured to provide a switch control signal from the first circuit arrangement to the switch circuit; wherein the switch circuit is coupled to the first circuit arrangement to provide a first circuit arrangement control signal to the first circuit arrangement depending on the switch control signal.
US08953339B2
There are provided a power module and a display device. There is provided the power module for a display device that includes a panel, a backlight unit supporting the panel and including a light source, and a conductive back cover coupled to the backlight unit, the power module including: a circuit board supplying power to the light source included in the backlight unit; a transformer mounted on the circuit board and supplying power to the circuit board; and a shielding plate mounted on the circuit board and covering, in a non-contact manner, the upper surface of the transformer opposed to the lower surface 401 of the transformer facing the surface of the circuit board. There is provided a display device including such a power module.
US08953337B2
The present invention relates to an electronic device including plural circuit board units that can be removed from the electronic device. The electronic device is designed to increase a data transfer rate between the circuit board units by using a circuit board for interconnect for electrically coupling the circuit board units placed in the electronic device, and using a cable for electrically or optically coupling the circuit board units placed in the electric device, or both of the cables.
US08953334B2
An apparatus for performing communication control includes a control module implemented with at least one integrated circuit (IC) whose package includes a plurality of sets of terminals, each set of the plurality of sets of terminals corresponding to one of a plurality of sub-modules of the control module, and within the sets of terminals, a set of terminals corresponding to a specific sub-module of the sub-modules include a power-input terminal arranged to input power from outside the control module. For example, on a printed circuit board (PCB) of the apparatus, arrangement of some modules is similar to that of some contact pads associated to the sets of terminals. In another example, the control module includes a power distribution system including at least one power distribution wire. In another example, a PCB within the apparatus includes at least one signal transmission wire and at least one set of co-plane ground wires.
US08953329B1
A server chassis bracket (SCB), including: a first set of holes configured to secure a first set of grommets gripping a first server component; a second set of holes configured to secure a second set of grommets gripping a second server component; a first shared guide configured to: guide a first grommet of the first set of grommets towards a first hole of the first set of holes; and guide a second grommet of the second set of grommets towards a second hole of the second set of holes; and a latch covering a portion of the first shared guide, including a tail, and configured to: generate a first audio verification of a successful installation of the first server component into the server chassis bracket; and generate a second audio verification of a successful installation of the second server component into the server chassis bracket.
US08953317B2
Cooling apparatuses and methods are provided for immersion-cooling one or more electronic components. The cooling apparatus includes a housing at least partially surrounding and forming a fluid-tight compartment about the electronic component(s) and a dielectric fluid disposed within the fluid-tight compartment, with the electronic component(s) immersed within the dielectric fluid. A vapor-condenser and one or more wicking components are also provided. The vapor-condenser includes a plurality of thermally conductive condenser fins extending within the fluid-tight compartment, and the wicking component(s) is disposed within the fluid-tight compartment in physical contact with at least a portion of one or more thermally conductive condenser fins of the thermally conductive condenser fins extending within the compartment. The wicking component(s) facilitates drawing condensed fluid from a surface of the thermally conductive condenser fin(s) and thereby enhances heat transfer across the surface of the condenser fin(s).
US08953314B1
A fully-passive, dynamically configurable directed cooling system for a microelectronic device is disclosed. In general, movable pins are suspended within a cooling plenum between an active layer and a second layer of the microelectronic device. In one embodiment, the second layer is another active layer of the microelectronic device. The movable pins are formed of a material that has a surface tension that decreases as temperature increases such that, in response to a temperature gradient on the surface of the active layer, the movable pins move by capillary flow in the directions of decreasing temperature. By moving in the direction of decreasing temperature, the movable pins move away from hot spots on the surface of the active layer, thereby opening a pathway for preferential flow of a coolant through the cooling plenum at a higher flow rate towards the hot spots.
US08953296B2
AC pre-charging techniques are provided for pre-charging the DC bus on a motor drive. AC pre-charging techniques involve pre-charge circuitry including a manual switch, an automatic switch, and pre-charge control circuitry to switch the automatic switch between pre-charge and pre-charge bypass modes in response to an initialized pre-charge operation, input voltage sags, etc. In some embodiments, the pre-charge operation may be initialized by switching the manual switch closed. In some embodiments, the pre-charge operation may also be initialized by a detected voltage sag on the DC bus. The pre-charge circuitry may also be configured to disconnect a motor drive from the AC power supply under certain fault conditions.
US08953292B2
Embodiments of bus interface circuitry and methods for short circuit detection are generally described herein. Other embodiments may be described and claimed. In some embodiments, the bus interface circuitry comprises logic circuitry to compare a driver stage output signal at a bond pad to internal reference voltages to generate control signals indicative of whether a short-circuit condition exists on a bus. The driver stage of the bus interface may be temporarily disabled when a short-circuit condition is indicated by the control signals.
US08953287B2
A mobile generator for generating a direct voltage for a tool supplied with direct current includes an alternating-voltage generator (1), an electronic control unit (3), a rectifier unit (2), which has a direct-voltage output (6) with live conductors (9, 10) for connecting the tool (11), and a protective device (14). The protective device is between the live conductors (9, 10) and a protective potential (18), especially ground or a protective wire. The protective device (14) has an insulating spark gap (15) responding in the case of an error with a defined response voltage (UT) for grounding the live conductors (9, 10).
US08953284B1
In one embodiment, a magnetic head includes a lower shield layer positioned at a media-facing surface of the magnetic head, at least two magnetoresistive (MR) elements positioned above the lower shield layer, each MR element extending in an element height direction away from the media-facing surface of the magnetic head, back wiring layers positioned above at least one lower layer of each of the MR elements at a position away from the media-facing surface of the magnetic head in the element height direction, wherein the back wiring layers are configured to electrically communicate with the MR elements and configured to separately extract signals from each MR element during a read operation, and an upper shield layer positioned above the MR elements that is configured to electrically communicate with the MR elements.
US08953261B2
A six-piece optical lens system includes, in order from the object side to the image side: a first lens element with a negative refractive power has a concave image-side surface, a second lens element with a positive refractive power has a convex image-side surface, a third lens element with a positive refractive power has a convex object-side surface, a fourth lens element with a negative refractive power has a concave image-side surface, a fifth lens element with a positive refractive power has a convex object-side surface, and a sixth lens element with a negative refractive power has a concave image-side surface. Each of the first, second, fourth and sixth lens elements has at least one aspheric surface, and one of the third and fifth lens elements is made of glass. Thereby, such a system can be applied to a high resolution mobile phone.
US08953259B2
A projection lens, in order along an optical axis from an image formation side to an image source side, includes a first lens, an aperture, a second lens, a third lens, and a fourth lens. The first lens is a meniscus lens with positive refractive power and a convex surface thereof facing the image formation side, and has at least an aspheric surface. The second lens is a biconcave lens with negative refractive power, and has at least an aspheric surface. The third lens is a biconvex lens with positive refractive power, and the fourth lens is a biconvex lens with positive refractive power, and has at least an aspheric surface. Therefore, the projection lens has a small size and high zoom ratio.
US08953258B1
An imaging lens includes a first lens element, a second lens element, an aperture stop, a third lens element, a fourth lens element, and a fifth lens elements arranged from an object side to an image side in the given order. Through designs of surfaces of the lens elements and relevant optical parameters, a short system length of the imaging lens may be achieved while maintaining good optical performance.
US08953254B2
An image pickup lens includes: in recited order from object plane toward image plane, a first lens having positive refractive power; a second lens having negative refractive power; a third lens having positive refractive power; a fourth lens having positive or negative refractive power; a fifth lens having positive refractive power; and a sixth lens having negative refractive power and having optical surfaces, one or more of the optical surfaces each having an aspherical shape with one or more inflection points.
US08953246B2
An image augmenting window and method of operation. An image augmenting window has at least one selectably transmissive internally focused intermediate image lens with a first portion that receives light and focuses it into a focused image on an internal focal plane. An output optical structure refracts the focused image out as a projected image. A selectably transmissive shutter located in the internal focal plane selectably blocks at least a portion of light passing through the lens. At least one controllable light source has a respective light source lens that is separate from and positioned adjacent to a lateral side of a respective selectably transmissive internally focused intermediate image lens and that emits an afocal projection of respective projected light. A controller independently controls each shutter and each controllable light source.
US08953243B2
An anti-reflection structure using surface plasmons and a high-k dielectric material, and a method of manufacturing the anti-reflection structure. The anti-reflection structure may include a high-k dielectric layer formed on a substrate, the high-k dielectric layer configured to allow incident light to pass therethrough, and a nano-material layer on the high-k dielectric layer. The high-k dielectric layer may include at least one of zirconium oxide (ZrO2), hafnium oxide (HfO2), titanium oxide (TiO2), tantalum oxide (Ta2O5), lanthanum oxide (La2O3), yttrium oxide (Y2O3) and aluminum oxide (Al2O3).
US08953241B2
An autostereoscopic display apparatus is provided for three-dimensional (3D) display. The autostereoscopic display apparatus includes a display panel having a plurality of display elements arranged in a two-dimensional array. The autostereoscopic display apparatus also includes a grating device coupled to the display device and having a plurality of grating elements to guide lights associated with 3D display into predetermined viewing directions. Further, the plurality of grating elements cover the plurality of display elements and are tilted such that a tilted direction of the plurality of grating elements form a non-zero angle with respect to a diagonal direction of the plurality display elements.
US08953229B2
An image data output unit including an output-side processing section for performing a plurality of processing operations on image data, and an imaging unit including an imaging-side processing section for performing a given processing operation on image data outputted from the image data output unit and an imaging operation section for performing an imaging operation based on the image data outputted from the imaging-side processing section are provided. An amount of data to be transferred per unit time of processed image data that will result when the processing operations are performed on the image data at the output-side processing section is compared with a transferable amount of data transmission per unit time between the image data output unit and the imaging unit, and each of the processing operations is allocated to the output-side processing section or the imaging-side processing section based on the result of the comparison.
US08953227B2
A multifunction printer includes a printing apparatus including: a printing device for printing on recording medium; a media advance system for moving the recording medium into position to be printed on by the printing device; and a scanning apparatus including: a platen including: a transparent portion; a first surface for supporting items to be scanned; a second surface opposite the first surface; a scan bar assembly disposed proximate the second surface of the platen; a frame including an uppermost surface that is disposed proximate to the second surface of the platen; and a lid disposed proximate the first surface of the platen, wherein a distance between the lid and the first surface of the platen is less than a distance between the lid and the frame when the lid is closed.
US08953225B2
An image reading device includes a feeding unit, a reading unit, and a processor. The feeding unit is configured to feed a plurality of sheets of original document one by one. The reading unit is configured to read an image on each of the plurality of sheets fed by the feeding unit and generate image data representing the image. The processor is configured to function as a selecting unit and a determining unit. The selecting unit is configured to select a criterion from among a plurality of criteria. The determining unit is configured to determine, according to the criterion selected by the selecting unit, whether or not a sheet of the original document is actually fed while being overlapped with another sheet of the original document based on image data corresponding to the sheet.
US08953219B2
Embodiments of the present invention provide systems and methods for adjusting for differences between a proof substrate and the ultimate substrate on which an illustration or other image is to be printed. Embodiments are particularly useful for any print process on an opaque substrate where a proof representing the expected result is provided that has a different substrate color or value from that being used in the print process.
US08953212B2
An image forming apparatus includes the following elements. A first obtaining unit obtains a print request including image forming data used for forming an image for each of logical pages. An output unit outputs a print medium on which an image is formed. A combining unit obtains, in response to the print request, from an external device that manages identifiers for specifying output numbers, information concerning a set of identifiers that specify the logical pages and an output number, and combines the obtained information with an image. A second obtaining unit obtains information concerning the identifiers combined with the image. A third obtaining unit obtains, if execution of the print request has stopped, print request stop information. A sending unit sends the obtained information concerning the identifiers and the print request stop information to the external device in association with each other.
US08953209B2
According to one embodiment, a server apparatus includes a reception unit, a storage unit, a list sending unit, and a transmission unit. The reception unit receives print data designating a user who is able to execute printing. The storage unit stores the print data received by the reception unit. The list sending unit sends a list of the print data, which the user who is an operator of an image forming apparatus is able to execute, to the image forming apparatus. The transmission unit transmits the print data selected from the list of the print data sent by the list sending unit to the image forming apparatus.
US08953198B2
In implementing data transfer using noncontact close proximity transfer, the user operability is improved. The invention includes a communication system having a DSC and printer. Each of the DSC and printer includes a noncontact close proximity transfer function unit which executes, when the DSC and printer are located within a communicable range, connection processing for establishing a connection state in a first communication layer, a print image transfer processing unit which executes, when the connection state in the first communication layer is established, authentication processing for checking whether a connection state in a second communication layer has been established, and executes, when authentication fails, connection processing for establishing the connection state in the second communication layer, and a link control unit which transfers data when authentication succeeds or when the connection state in the second communication layer is established.
US08953196B2
In an image forming device adapted to acquire image data and distribute the image data, a storage unit stores respective plug-in modules of an input process, an image transforming process, and an output process with respect to the image data. A combining information acquisition unit acquires combining information including plug-in identifiers which respectively indicate the plug-in modules. A combining unit combines two or more of the plug-in modules to generate a virtual plug-in based on the combining information. A flow setting unit sets up a workflow in which the plug-in modules including the virtual plug-in are combined arbitrarily. A workflow control unit controls processes included in the workflow when a message distribution process based on the workflow is requested.
US08953191B2
An image processing apparatus displays a list of document data managed by a document management system, checks-out the document data selected from the list, and prints it. When a check-in is performed, a print document is scanned and scan data obtained by the scan is checked-in to the document management system.
US08953189B1
A method and apparatus for verifying print jobs to prevent confidential data loss is described. In one embodiment, the method for verifying print jobs using one or more processors to prevent confidential data loss from memory comprises processing a print job information associated with a document, comparing the plurality job information with a policy for identifying confidential data to produce a comparison result and communicating instructions to print at least one portion of the document based on the comparison result.
US08953179B2
When a user sets, through an operation unit, an inspection item of inspection processing which inspects a print state by reading image data by the image reading unit from a sheet output from a printer unit and conveyed by conveyance rollers, an inspection control unit of an inspection unit changes a sheet conveyance speed in the inspection unit and sheet feeding timing according to the inspection item. A print medium conveyance control unit controls drive of conveyance rollers according to the sheet conveyance speed and the sheet feeding timing.
US08953172B2
An optical coherence tomography observation apparatus comprising a controller (30) and a detector (40), the controller being configured to illuminate first illumination light to an observation object, cause an image generator to generate a first tomographic image showing tomography of the observation object, illuminate second illumination light to the observation object, and cause the image generator to generate a second tomographic image showing tomography of the observation, and the detector being configured to detect a relative position of the second tomographic image with respect to the first tomographic image, at which a correlation of the second tomographic image with the first tomographic image becomes highest, are provided.
US08953166B2
Various methods and systems are provided for generation of a laser pulse with massive pulse-front tilt (PFT) and its use for measurement of laser pulses. In one embodiment, a method includes directing a laser pulse into an etalon and propagating the laser pulse through the etalon to form a tilted pulse. Another embodiment involves directing pulses into an etalon and propagating the pulses through the etalon in opposite directions to form a pair of massively tilted pulses that are tilted in opposite directions. In another embodiment, a system includes a Fresnel biprism configured to produce a pair of pulses from an input pulse and a lens configured to direct each pulse through an opening (or openings) in an input surface of an etalon, where the etalon is configured yield a pair of pulses tilted in opposite directions, each pulse having a massive PFT.
US08953164B2
The transmittance of a filter periodically varies with respect to the incident light frequency. Provided that fk is the sum of Fk and νk, or the difference obtained by subtracting Fk from νk, depending on the kth light source among multiple light sources, an incidence guide causes light from the plurality of light sources to be incident on the filter such that the propagation angle of light when light from the kth light source propagates through the interior of the filter equals θk obtained by computation using fk. The incidence guide causes light to be incident on the filter, taking fk to be the sum of νk and Fk for at least one of the light sources, and taking fk to be the difference between νk and Fk for at least one other of the light sources. A detector detects the intensity of transmitted light that transmits through the filter.
US08953160B2
Various systems and methods of monitoring laser safety by sensing contact of the system with a sample are provided. The system includes a focusing element for focusing an incident light from a laser light source onto a sample, an optical element having a collection zone for collecting a signal from the sample, a reflected light sensor for sensing a reflected light from the sample, wherein the reflected light sensor is located outside the collection zone of the optical element and on an inner surface of a housing of the system, an electrical circuit operably connected to the reflected light sensor and the laser light source and configured to control power to the laser light source in accordance with the reflected light sensed by the reflected light sensor and a spectral analyzer for processing the signal. Methods and other systems are also described and illustrated.
US08953158B2
A system for grading an agricultural product employing hyper-spectral imaging and analysis. The system includes at least one light source for providing a beam of light, an interferometer or a prism array for dispersing electromagnetic radiation emitted from said agricultural product into a corresponding spectral image, a light measuring device for detecting component wavelengths within the corresponding spectral image and a processor operable to compare the detected component wavelengths to a database of previously graded agricultural products to identify and select a grade for the agricultural product. A method for grading an agricultural product via hyper-spectral imaging and analysis is also provided.
US08953156B2
Defect detection method and defect detection device and defect observation device provided with same
The disclosed device, which, using an electron microscope or the like, minutely observes defects detected by an optical appearance-inspecting device or an optical defect-inspecting device, can reliably insert a defect to be observed into the field of an electron microscope or the like, and can be a device of a smaller scale. The electron microscope, which observes defects detected by an optical appearance-inspecting device or by an optical defect-inspecting device, has a configuration wherein an optical microscope that re-detects defects is incorporated, and a spatial filter and a distribution polarization element are inserted at the pupil plane when making dark-field observations using this optical microscope. The electron microscope, which observes defects detected by an optical appearance-inspecting device or an optical defect-inspecting device, has a configuration wherein an optical microscope that re-detects defects is incorporated, and a distribution filter is inserted at the pupil plane when making dark-field observations using this optical microscope.
US08953151B2
A method for determining the presence of a transmitter and a receiver in a vehicle by means of a central processing unit, wherein said transmitter and receiver are designed for transmitting electromagnetic or optical signals in a predetermined direction and for receiving said signals from substantially the same predetermined direction, respectively, for example for communicating between different vehicles, and wherein said transmitter and receiver are operatively connected to the central processing unit, comprising the steps of: —generation of a signal in the central processing unit; —transmission of a signal by the transmitter in dependence on the signal generated in the central processing unit; —reception by the receiver of the signal from the transmitter; and —determination by the central processing unit of the presence of the transmitter and the receiver in dependence on the signal from the receiver.
US08953148B2
An exposure apparatus that forms a pattern by exposing a substrate is equipped with a first platform tower, a second platform tower installed at a predetermined distance, and an exposure main section arranged within the space between both platform towers that includes a plurality of high rigidity sections each including a high rigidity component. Accordingly, it becomes possible to use a module (a high rigidity section) of the preceding generation even when the generation changes.
US08953140B2
A method for setting a pre-tilt angle of liquid crystal molecules includes (1) providing liquid crystal material, a CF substrate, and a TFT substrate; (2) arranging the substrates to form a gap therebetween in which the liquid crystal material is filled to form a liquid crystal cell; (3) providing a drive control circuit that generates driving voltages and connecting the drive control circuit to the TFT substrate; (4) providing a small-amplitude oscillation device and an irradiation intensity variable ultraviolet light source and positioning the liquid crystal cell on the oscillation device; (5) activating the oscillation device to cause the liquid crystal cell to make small-amplitude oscillation and conducting on the drive control circuit to supply driving voltages to drive the liquid crystal material, the ultraviolet light source being applied to irradiate the liquid crystal cell with ultraviolet lights of different intensities; and (6) repeating step (5) for at least one time.
US08953137B2
A flexible display including a flexible substrate, an array circuit layer, a protection film, and an adhesive layer is provided. The flexible substrate has a first surface and a second surface, disposed opposite to each other. The array circuit layer is disposed on the second surface of the flexible substrate. The protection film is disposed on the first surface of the flexible substrate. The adhesive layer is disposed between the protection film and the flexible substrate, and has a thickness, substantially greater than or equal to 30 micrometers.
US08953135B2
A display apparatus comprises a first thin film transistor (TFT) and a second TFT which are disposed in a display area. A first signal transmission line is disposed in a peripheral area surrounding the display area and is electrically connected to the first TFT. A second signal transmission line adjacent to the first signal transmission line is electrically connected to the second TFT. In a first portion of the peripheral area, the first signal transmission line is parallel to the second signal transmission line and is spaced by a first gap from the second signal transmission line. In a second portion of the peripheral area, the first signal transmission line is parallel to the second signal transmission line and is spaced by a second gap from and the second signal transmission line. The second gap is greater than the first gap. Other features are also provided.
US08953125B2
It is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid crystal display device which has a wide viewing angle and less color-shift depending on an angle at which a display screen is seen and can display an image favorably recognized both outdoors in sunlight and dark indoors (or outdoors at night). The liquid crystal display device includes a first portion where display is performed by transmission of light and a second portion where display is performed by reflection of light. Further, a liquid crystal layer includes a liquid crystal molecule which rotates parallel to an electrode plane when a potential difference is generated between two electrodes of a liquid crystal element provided below the liquid crystal layer.
US08953122B2
A liquid crystal display device with a higher aperture ratio is provided. According to one embodiment of the present invention, second color filters are formed so as to overlap with first color filters when adjacent color filters having different colors are formed on the TFT substrate side, so that the angle of the first tapers where said first color filters overlap and the angle of the second tapers where said second color filters overlap are set to 45° or more and 90° or less.
US08953120B2
A display device having a light-emitting element and a see-through capability, with which a variety of display modes can be exhibited depending on a use application or situation. In such a display device having a see-through capability, between a first display portion having pixels including dual-emission type light-emitting elements and a second display portion having a light-scattering liquid crystal layer, a shutter-shaped light-blocking unit is provided so that a variety of display modes can be exhibited depending on use applications or situations by selecting modes of the first display portion, the second display portion, and the shutter-shaped light-blocking unit.
US08953104B2
An automatic shading electric welding lens comprises a view window and a side frame. The view window is composed of an optical filter and a liquid crystal sheet sequentially overlapped. The automatic shading electric welding lens is provided with an illuminating device. The illuminating device includes a lighting body, a switch and a power supply electrically connected to each other to form a loop. The lighting body is arranged on a surface of the side frame facing a welding object. The lighting body is a light emitting diode. The switch is a time-delay switch.
US08953100B2
According to one embodiment, an information processing apparatus includes a display, a speaker, a connector, a multi-display module, an audio driver, and an audio-output controller. The connector is configured to output a video signal and an audio signal. The multi-display module is configured to control an outputting of the video signal in order to display a part of an image on the display and another part of the image at an external apparatus connected to the connector. The audio driver is configured to control an outputting of the audio signal at the speaker and the connector. The audio-output controller is configured to control the audio driver to output the audio signal to the speaker or the connector in accordance with the state of displaying the image at the display or the external apparatus, if the multi-display module displays the parts of the image on the display and the external apparatus.
US08953098B2
A television signal processing device and a television signal processing method are proposed according to embodiments of the present invention, wherein the television signal processing device includes a first signal processing unit, a television demodulator, and a second signal processing unit. The first signal processing unit performs a first signal processing operation upon a television signal according to a feedback signal to reduce distortion of the television signal and accordingly generate a processed television signal. The television demodulator is coupled to the first signal processing unit for receiving the processed television signal, and demodulating the processed television signal to generate a demodulated television signal. The second signal processing unit is coupled to the first signal processing unit and the television demodulator for receiving the demodulated television signal, and performing a second signal processing operation upon the received demodulated television signal to generate the feedback signal.
US08953097B2
Provided is a motion vector estimation device capable of estimating the motion vector with less computation. A motion vector estimation device for estimating, by means of repetitive calculations, the motion vector of each of a plurality of pixel groups which is contained in an input image and which each contains one or more pixels, the motion vector estimation device being provided with a means for making repetitive calculations with regard to the pixel groups that do not have a high frequency component from among the plurality of pixel groups contained in the input image after making repetitive calculations with regard to the pixel groups that have a high frequency component from among the plurality of pixel groups contained in the input image.
US08953086B2
An image pickup device includes a placing section on which an image pickup element that receives light from an object is placed, a tilted surface section, which is provided on the placing section and is tilted with respect to the axis of light that enters the image pickup element, a direction specifying section, which specifies a moving direction so that the placing section moves parallel to the optical axis direction, a panel section having a surface perpendicular to the optical axis, and a rotating member, which is disposed between the tilted surface section and the panel section, and rotates and moves in the tilt direction of the tilted surface by being in contact with the tilted surface section.
US08953082B2
A camera system that transfers static image data while reducing power consumption is provided. A static image application issues a frame transfer command at a certain transfer period to a camera module. In each transfer period, the camera module wakes up from a suspend state and generates static image data. After the end of the transfer, the camera module transitions to the suspend state. The camera module is able to transition to the suspend state at each transfer period and thus is able to reduce power consumption.
US08953077B2
A solid-state imaging device includes, in a semiconductor substrate, a pixel portion provided with a photoelectric conversion portion, which photoelectrically converts incident light to obtain an electric signal and a peripheral circuit portion disposed on the periphery of the pixel portion, wherein a gate insulating film of aMOS transistor in the peripheral circuit portion is composed of a silicon oxynitride film, a gate insulating film of aMOS transistor in the pixel portion is composed of a silicon oxynitride film, and an oxide film is disposed just above the photoelectric conversion portion in the pixel portion.
US08953070B2
Apparatus, methods and systems for bridging between commercially available, high-speed image sensors and low cost, low power microcontrollers. An image sensor interface processor is provided for controlling an image sensor, and receiving and storing image data. A microcontroller (or other general purpose or image processor) can communicate with the image sensor interface processor, to access pixel data in a random access fashion through a parallel memory access interface at any speed desired by the microcontroller. Moreover, automatic power management of the image sensor can be provided by the image sensor interface processor. In some alternative embodiments, the described image sensor interface processor may be integrated into the image sensor itself, or a microcontroller, or some other intermediate device.
US08953068B2
An imaging device includes: an image sensor that outputs pixel signals by capturing a subject image, the image sensor including a plurality of pixels disposed in a matrix pattern and; a calculation unit that calculates correction values each used to individually correct errors in pixel signals read out from one of pixel columns at the image sensor, while the image sensor in a continuous shooting state continuously outputs the pixel signals; and a correction unit that corrects the pixel signals by using the correction values calculated in the continuous shooting state, wherein: if a specific condition changes in the continuous shooting state, the correction unit corrects the pixel signals by using the correction values already in use.
US08953064B1
Image data is processed to facilitate focusing and/or optical correction. According to an example embodiment of the present invention, an imaging arrangement collects light data corresponding to light passing through a particular focal plane. The light data is collected using an approach that facilitates the determination of the direction from which various portions of the light incident upon a portion of the focal plane emanate from. Using this directional information in connection with value of the light as detected by photosensors, an image represented by the light is selectively focused and/or corrected.
US08953061B2
An image capture device that has an image sensor for capturing a scene, a multi-core processor with plurality of linked, identical processing units and an image sensor interface, all incorporated onto a single chip. The device also has an orientation sensor for sensing the device orientation. The processing units are configured for receiving data from the image sensor interface and an output from the orientation sensor, to simultaneously process the data.
US08953060B2
A hand held electronic device that has a CMOS image sensor for capturing image data, a wireless device port for wireless connection to a user input device and, a central processor. The central processor has multiple processing units, an image sensor interface and a wireless device interface integrated onto a single chip. The image sensor interface receives the image data from the CMOS image sensor, and the wireless device interface being configured to receive user inputs from the wireless device port. The multiple processing units are configured to process the image data in parallel together with the user inputs from the wireless device interface.
US08953056B2
A method, apparatus, and system for dynamic range estimation of imaged scenes for automatic exposure control. For a given exposure time setting, certain areas of a scene may be brighter than what a camera can capture. In cameras, including those experiencing substantial lens vignetting, a gain stage may be used to extend dynamic range and extract auto-exposure data from the extended dynamic range. Alternatively, dynamic range can be extended using pre-capture image information taken under reduced exposure conditions.
US08953053B2
An image processing apparatus of the present invention includes a shake detector 109 which detects a shake of an image pickup apparatus, a shake analyzer 112 which obtains features of a plurality of shake components whose kinds are different from each other, a parameter calculator 113 which calculates a filtering process parameter depending on the features for each of the shake components, and a processor 114 which performs a filtering process using the filtering process parameter calculated for each of the shake components to calculate a shake reduction amount and performs a shake reduction process based on the shake reduction amount with respect to the image.
US08953050B2
An interaction system is provided. The interaction system has a first mobile device, configured to capture images of a scene, and a server, configured to recognize a first electronic device from the images captured by the first mobile device, so that the first electronic device and the first mobile device interact with each other.
US08953048B2
The present invention ensures the visibility of a character or a drawing displayed on a screen. The illuminance of one or more partial areas forming a display unit is measured, and a video display position is set to an area except for the partial area where the illuminance is a reference value or more.
US08953047B2
An imaging system may include an array of image pixels and verification circuitry. The verification circuitry may inject a test voltage into the pixel signal chain of a test pixel. The test voltage may be output on a column line associated with the column of pixels in which the test pixel is located. The test signal may be provided to a column ADC circuit for conversion from an analog test signal to a digital test signal. Verification circuitry may compare the digital output test signal with a predetermined reference signal to determine whether the imaging system is functioning properly (e.g., to determine whether column ADC circuits or other circuit elements in the pixel signal chain are functioning properly). If the output test signals do not match the expected output signals, the imaging system may be disabled and/or a warning signal may be presented to a user of the system.
US08953046B2
An information processing apparatus acquires virtual viewpoint information of a plurality of frames contained in a virtual viewpoint video, selects a camera for shooting an image to be used in generating an image at a virtual viewpoint in a frame from a plurality of cameras with respect to each of the plurality of the frames based on a positional relationship between the virtual viewpoint information of each frame and viewpoint information of the plurality of the cameras, and reselects the camera selected for each of the plurality of the frames.
US08953045B2
The invention proposes an automated teller machine having different control elements, such as a card entry slot (4), for example, wherein at least one camera (CAMK) is integrated in a control element, the card entry slot (4), for example, and captures images of a plurality of sub-regions attributed to said control element (4), such as an interior region, outer region and overhead region. Lighting (L) that illuminates one or some of the partial regions, the interior region or the slit region of the card entry slot (4), for example, can also be arranged, thereby also improving the image. In addition, the construction can be furnished with a light-conducting material (K) over which light produced by the lighting (L) can be guided and distributed.
US08953044B2
Systems and methods are disclosed that include a video-based analysis system that detects, tracks and archives vehicles in video stream data at multiple resolutions. The system includes an image capturing device that captures video stream data having video at a first high resolution. A vehicle detection module detects at least one vehicle within the video. A vehicle analysis module is configured to analyze the video and to extract one or more key vehicle features from the video to enable identification of a vehicle of interest (VOI) according to a set of predetermined criteria. A subsampling module creates a reduced resolution video stream in a second subsampled resolution that is lower than the first high resolution while maintaining the one or more extracted key features within the reduced resolution video stream in the first high resolution, and archives the reduced resolution video stream into a video database.
US08953040B1
A doorbell system can be used to block a first electricity that is less than a first threshold from entering an electronic chime. By blocking the first electricity from entering the electronic chime, the electronic chime is not allowed to emit a notification sound. The doorbell system can also be used to allow a second electricity that is greater than the first threshold to enter the electronic chime. By allowing the second electricity to enter the electronic chime, this can allow the electronic chime to emit a notification sound in response to a visitor being present.
US08953037B2
A system for reflectance acquisition of a target includes a light source, an image capture device, and a reflectance reference chart. The reflectance reference chart is fixed relative to the target. The light source provides a uniform band of light across at least a dimension of the target. The image capture device is configured and positioned to encompass at least a portion of the target and at least a portion of the reflectance reference chart within a field-of-view of the image capture device. The image capture device captures a sequence of images of the target and the reflectance reference chart during a scan thereof. Reflectance responses are calculated for the pixels in the sequence of images. Reference reflectance response distribution functions are matched to the calculated reflectance responses, and an image of the target is reconstructed based at least in part on the matched reference reflectance response distribution functions.
US08953033B2
An electrode inspection apparatus for spot welding is provided for precisely measuring diameters of a tip of an electrode without reducing availability ratio in a production line, and is particularly useful when inspecting a weld gun having electrodes with a narrow distance therebetween.A CCD camera 91 for imaging the tip of the electrode held to the weld gun is disposed in an inspection apparatus body 6. The inspection apparatus body 6 includes a measuring reference unit 7 in which a fixing hole 72a for fixing the tip of the electrode is formed, and a mirror 8 obliquely arranged with respect to the electrode so as to be distant from the fixing hole 72a at a position opposite to the electrode with respect to the measuring reference unit 7. The CCD camera 91 is disposed in a side of the mirror 8 with a distance therebetween for imaging the tip of the electrode from a direct front thereof reflected on the mirror 8 by reflection.
US08953032B1
In one general embodiment, a system for viewing partially or fully enclosed areas comprises a camera coupled to a first end of an elongated member and at least one interface for communicating with a viewing device. The system also includes a controller coupled to a second end of the elongated member for controlling at least one of the member, the camera, and the viewing device, wherein the elongated member has a cross sectional area of less than about one square inch at a point toward the first end of the elongated member. Additional systems and methods are also presented.
US08953023B2
Provided is a method and apparatus for linear depth mapping. Linear depth mapping includes using algorithms to correct the distorted depth mapping of stereoscopic capture and display systems.
US08953021B2
An image processing system includes a calculation unit, a reconstruction unit, a confidence map estimation unit and an up-sampling unit. The up-sampling unit is configured to perform a joint bilateral up-sampling on depth information of a first input image based on a confidence map of the first input image and a second input image with respect to an object and increase a first resolution of the first input image to a second resolution to provide an output image with the second resolution.
US08953012B2
Embodiments of a multi-plenoptic system with image stacking and method for wide field-of-regard (FOR) high-resolution image are generally described herein. The multi-plenoptic system may include a subfield separator to decompose an image within a wide field of view into a plurality of multi-pixel subfields. The subfield separator may rotate a chief ray within each multi-pixel subfield by a differing amount relative to a rotation of other rays of the subfield. The multi-plenoptic system may also include a subfield modulator to selectively block or pass light from at least a portion of one or more of the subfields and a subfield image formation element to relay the portions of the subfields that are passed by the subfield modulator onto substantially overlapping areas of a common image plane. A single focal-plane array (FPA) may be aligned with the common image plane to provide for high-resolution imaging over a wide FOR.
US08953006B2
A thermal head and a printer head are disclosed. The thermal head includes heat generating members, a drive IC disposed, pads and interconnection lines which are all disposed on a substrate. The heat generating members are arranged in a first direction. The drive IC is operable to control driving of the heat generating members. The pads are operable to being electrically connected to terminals of the drive IC. The interconnection lines electrically connect each of the heat generating members to one of the pads. The pads are arranged in a first direction and constitute first pad groups and second pad groups constituted by the pads that constitute the first pad groups. The second pad groups are arranged in the first direction so as to be shifted from each other in a second direction that differs from the first direction.
US08952998B2
An organic light emitting display apparatus that is transparent and in which transmittance of external light is high and transmittance is locally different. The organic light emitting display apparatus includes: a first region comprising a plurality of pixels for displaying an image, a first transmitting unit, and a second transmitting unit, the first and second transmitting units being for transmitting external light, and the first transmitting unit being formed smaller than the second transmitting unit; and a second region comprising a plurality of pixels for displaying an image and another first transmitting unit for transmitting external light.
US08952997B2
An image processor receives information of a type of an input image, and performs a correction to the input image in accordance with an illuminance in an area near a display that displays the input image and the received information of the type of the input image.
US08952990B2
Disclosed is a method for processing interaction between a user and hologram using a volumetric data type object wave field. A method for processing interaction between a user and hologram for user's action using a volumetric data type object wave field includes: capturing user action on the holographic image of the object and solving collision between user and object; computing the updated position and rotation of the object by time integration of rigid body equation in collision; calculating the relative position and rotation of the hologram plane with respect to local object coordinates; transforming the hologram in the pre-computed volumetric object wave field grid according to the relative position and rotation of the hologram plane in local object coordinates and reading the object wave fields at all the pixels of the transformed hologram plane in order to generate a new hologram for the transformed object caused by user action.
US08952985B2
A digital comic editor comprising a speech bubble region addition device configured to add a new piece of speech bubble region information to the position indicated by the indication device, a speech bubble region deletion device configured to delete the speech bubble region information from the position indicated by the indication device, and an editing device configured to update the speech bubble region information included in the information file based on the speech bubble region information added by the speech bubble region addition device and the speech bubble region information deleted by the speech bubble region deletion device.
US08952980B2
Systems and methods for transforming and displaying a video signal on a display are provided with any number of features. In some embodiments, system is configured to receive a first set of input signals in a controller. The system can determine in the controller a first set of luminances and colors that would be produced on a first display with the first set of input signals. The system can then determine in the controller a second set of luminances that would produce the first set of colors on a second display. The system can then generate in the controller a second set of input signals that would produce the second set of luminances on the second display, and can output the second set of input signals to the second display.
US08952970B2
A rendering processing apparatus and method using multiprocessing are disclosed. The rendering processing method includes dividing an application execution window into frames and generating a rendering processing command for rendering processing of an image on a frame basis by a pre-rendering manager, generating a rendering image for a frame according to the generated rendering processing command by a rendering manager, and storing the generated rendering image in a memory. A task for generating a rendering processing command is divided into at least one task, a task for generating a rendering image is divided into at least one task, and the divided tasks can be processed simultaneously in a plurality of threads.
